A Very French Christmas
Le Réveillon Menu + Cheese Pairing + Recipes
Thank you to everyone who is gifting The Condiment Book this year or using the recipes for their Christmas meal! It makes me so incredibly happy to know that you love the book and I appreciate it more than you know when you share your creations. If you’re in the US/Canada, you can preorder your book here.
I’ve included an excerpt, a cheese and jam STINKOMETER pairing chart, from The Condiment Book below to be of use for this year’s festivities!
Merry *almost* Christmas to those who celebrate! This year, I wanted to share what a traditional Christmas meal looks like in France. This meal, also called Le Réveillon, is traditionally eaten after midnight mass… aka in the early early AM on the 25th of December. Let’s just say, my family does not do this, but we do eat the meal on the evening of the 24th.
As you may have heard, the French looooove to sit around a table and chit chat. A lunch should last 2-3 hours, dinner 3-4 hours. It’s safe to assume that you can be at the table on Christmas or NYE for well over 5 hours. There’s just a lot to discuss, to eat, and to drink ok!?
A typical Réveillon dinner begins with champagne whether you like it or not. When my mom was pregnant with me, my French Mamie, grandma, forced her to take a sip of champagne because otherwise the baby (aka me) would be no fun. The bubbles bring the joy and is the official marker of the party commencing.
The Full Menu
There are so many different nibbles that can be served for Christmas dinner but here are some staples that you’ll find in most French households:
Starters
Huitres, oysters
Escargots, snails
Saumon fumé, smoked salmon, or other raw seafood
Foie gras, fatty liver - I’m aware that this is a very contested food due to the harming of geese. There are now many farmers who make foie gras ethically (like our neighbor) so be sure to inquire how it’s made if you’re ever purchasing or consuming the product. I haven’t had any in years but this Christmas, my dad actually cooked his own so I’m looking forward to trying the final result!
Often, foie gras is served on pain d’épices, spiced bread. Think of gingerbread men but as a full loaf rather than a cookie and with an anise-heavy kick. It’s also made with honey rather than molasses so it has a nice glossy exterior and chewy interior. You can buy this bread year-round but it’s more common to consume during the holidays. Slice thinly, toast, top with foie gras or slather some butter on it and you’re good to go!
franco-american gingerbread man pain d’épices cake Drink pairing: sweet white wine like a Sancerre or Jurançon. My Mamie’s favorite was a Coteaux du Layon so that’s what we’ll be having it with. This year, I’ll be also be whipping up some Sancerre Jam to serve with the foie gras on some homemade pain d’épices.
Main Dish
La Dinde aux marrons, turkey and chestnuts - I’ve never done this to be honest. My family usually opts for a duck magret, some families serve scallops, there’s really no singular dish that fits the bill.
Sides + Condiments
To each one’s own! There will obviously always be Dijon mustard on the table but otherwise, it’s adventure time. I love serving unexpected, more American, sides to my French family like cranberry sauce.
Here are some fun ideas for this year’s meal that can be made easily before the big day and can be served with the main dish:
Festive Squash Jam - this pairs wonderfully with certain meat such as duck, turkey, goose, boar, pork… It’s also a fun addition to Christmas morning pancakes or cinnamon roll!
Cranberry Sauce - In the UK, cranberry sauce is habitually on theChristmas dinner table! I had no idea about this until moving to London but I am a fan.
Carrot Parsnip Chutney - a recent favorite! I’ve been tagged in so made by you this week, it makes me so happy to know you all enjoy it as much as I do.
Quince Jelly - use this jelly as a side to your main dish or even to glaze it! Think glazed ham, pork, carrots, etc.
Holiday Flavored Oil - Like the above, use this to drizzle atop a simple salad, onto side dishes, use in your cooking, or as a side to dip some gorgeous crusty bread into!
Candied Spiced Grapes - this works well with any cheese board! I’d personally serve it with a young goat
Quick Tomato Chutney - not tomato season but if you happen to have any frozen or canned from this summer, feel free to use those to make this!
Cheese Course
Yes, there is always a cheese course during a French meal - it comes after the main and before the dessert. If you’re having a salad course as well, you eat your main, then your salad, then the cheese comes out with another full baguette or two, and hopefully a nice bottle of red wine.
When serving a cheese course, I like to include a variety of different cheeses - hard, soft, young, aged, gooey and stinky, hard and salty… I tend to stick with cheese from my region if I’m back in France to support local farmers (and because hello I have regional pride and am convinced our cheese is the best). Frankly, serve whatever you find, whatever you have in your fridge, and whatever tempts you! As always there is no right or wrong answer.
When it comes to pairings, you do you is still the name of the game. If this intimidates you, here is the STINKOMETER chart from my book with some of my favorite flavor pairings with cheeses sorted from least to most stinky:
Thank you to everyone who is gifting TCB this Christmas, it has brought me so much joy to see you enjoy it as much as I do. I can’t wait to come to Aus/NZ in Feb and for the US version to come out in May (preorder already avail and cover to come SO SOON)!
Dessert
Bûche de Noël, Christmas “Log”
Now this is a must in all French households. It doesn’t matter if you prefer chocolate, praliné, vanilla, coffee (the Dinhut family favorite), chestnut spread, or a more fruit-heavy tropical mix… there is a bûche for everyone.
All throughout the month of December, you’ll see this rolled cake sold in all bakeries - small, medium, and big, as well as in all grocery stores, fresh and also made with ice cream in the frozen section. Chefs around France make their own version, taking their bakes and artistry to the extreme yearly but I must admit, I love a really simple one.
Last year, I made a coffee one using a
recipe and for the first time ever, my cake did NOT crack when I rolled it! SUCCESS! I will be remaking a coffee one this year, and if I have time, I’ll also try to whip up a coconut one with fresh pineapple and vanilla bean cream inside covered in coconut flakes to look like a snowy floor!Some fun filling ideas:
Boozy Cajeta - also in my book!
Chestnut spread - also in my book!
The best part of the Bûche de Noël is honestly how you can have fun decorating it. It’s illegally easy to create wood markings with a fork on buttercream, and a fun family activity to make mini mushroom meringues, and find little elves and deer at the shop to decorate even more.
Miscellaneous
I wasn’t quite sure how to name this section so I guess misc will have to do?? Although citrus are common at this time of the year, in France, so are litchis!
This Year’s Menu
So what will we be eating this year? It’s still up in the air when I’m writing this newsletter but here is the gist of it…
Starter - foie gras my dad made + my homemade pain d’épices + Sancerre jam, smoked salmon
Main - we’re on a hunt to find goose at the moment but if we can’t find any, we’ll opt for our usual family favorite, magret de canard
Cheeseboard + candied olives + spiced grapes
Dessert - Bûche de Noël, Christmas koulourakia (need to rep my Greek heritage), litchis
BUT let’s not forget the mighty Christmas morning menu… Every year my mom makes sourdough bagels, which are delicious on their own but also a great way to use up any leftover smoked salmon and condiments from the night before!
and that’s a wrap! Happy holidays to you all and I can’t wait to share what we ended up serving this year.
Since TikTok may be facing its last few weeks, make sure you’re following me on Instagram and my recent Youtube (I’ll be posting a holiday at the mills video) if you would like to keep up with my 2025 travels, mill projects, and recipes :)
What are you having for the holidays this year?
Omg the cherry & red wine sauce sound amazing though! I might opt for that over cranberry next year ☺️
Gifting The Condiment book this year at my family gift exchange!!