Light & Rustic Dinner Party Menu

This light & rustic dinner menu can take you from spring parties all the way through fall parties. It’s easy to prepare, looks pretty with its fresh ingredients, and it’s perfect for summer entertaining outdoors too. 

Light Rustic Dinner Party Menu

A light & rustic dinner party menu is just what you need when hosting a casual get-together. And these dinner party ideas turned out delicious! I served them family-style for this fall tabletop design and their vibrant color complements the setting.

Whenever I entertain at home I’m guilty of thinking that I have to create a gourmet meal that takes hours to prepare. Although that’s actually my idea of fun, I’m also learning the art of restraint and embracing the idea of serving food in a more natural and rustic state.

If you’ve ever been to France or Italy you know how they serve a casual meal with fresh wholesome ingredients and minimal prep. And it’s amazing!

I was inspired by that concept and decided on this dinner party menu consisting of a cheese board starter, nicoise salad, and rustic pasta with sausage. It’s the type of meal that ignites your taste buds with basic ingredients and fantastic flavor combos.

Cheese Board Starter

Nothing is as classic and satisfying as a cheese board when entertaining at home. There’s no need to go overboard for a casual dinner party, just add 2-3 cheese options, nuts and fruit, and bread or crackers. The beauty is in the arrangement and you really can’t go wrong there. Just add:

• blue cheese
• white cheddar
• purple grapes
• fresh figs
• walnuts
• almonds
• french baguette slices

Nicoise Salad

This salad is more like part of the main coarse rather than a starter salad. The protein packed salad is a fabulous combination of ingredients, and oh so French! Add the ingredients in separate rows to add beauty to the presentation.

• Mixed bed of spinach and arugula
• white tuna {I like the tuna from the pouch rather than the can}
• boiled eggs, quartered
• tomatoes
• nicoise olives
• whole caper berries
• sliced green onion for garnish
• vinaigrette dressing

Pasta with Sausage

Nothing satisfies a crowd like pasta tossed with flavorful add-ins. To keep this light and rustic I added sausage medallions. You don’t need a heavy sauce, just some good quality olive oil. I actually used the oil that the sun-dried tomatoes were packed in, to drizzle over the top and it was superb.

This dish can also be served cold or room temperature. Just use sliced pepperoni or salami instead of the sausage.

• penne pasta, cooked al dente
• cooked sausage medallions
• sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil
• mini bocconcini
• fresh basil leaves
• regular or flavored olive oil, or oil from the sun-dried tomatoes

Ideas for a rustic menu

These details will add the finishing touch to your meal. For more menu ideas for casual entertaining, check out my fall dinner party and the dinner party menu recipes from last year. Cheers!

• Round out the table with a baguette served with soft butter, or ricotta in a bowl drizzled with olive oil and freshly ground pepper.
• Choose a crisp dry or semi-dry white wine to wash it all down. A Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc are nice. Or try a lovely Rosé.
• For dessert, serve this rustic apple galette with caramel drizzle, or this lightened apple-berry galette. 

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