This Friendsgiving entertaining was hosted by Cambria Winery.
Thanksgiving is a wonderful time of year. A time for gratitude and giving thanks with your family. However, our friends can be family to us too. Even if we don’t get to spend the exact day of Thanksgiving with them, that doesn’t mean you can’t have a get-together to show how much they mean to you. Throwing a Friendsgiving means gathering your friends and enjoying the tastes of the delicious food, drink and their company. It can be a blast, and it doesn’t have to be too complicated to put together.
My husband and I love entertaining, but for our Friendsgiving event we wanted it to be an informal sit-down Thanksgiving dinner. We decided to make it a mingling event with good wine, delicious bites, lots of talking, laughing and an all-around fun evening.
I decided to create a small bites menu for easy eating since we wouldn’t be using a fork and knife to eat, and would more than likely be standing. I took all the main elements of a large Thanksgiving meal and made them into some finger food sizes.
It was fun creating this menu, and the guests loved it. We also enjoyed some delicious wine, which is always a hit. We wanted our guests to enjoy some of our favorite wine from Cambria Estate Winery. We served 2012 Cambria Julia’s Vineyard Pinot Noir, and 2012 Cambria Katherine’s Vineyard Chardonnay.
To save space and add flow to the room, we set up a buffet table with decor, plates, glasses, and utensils. We then used a round table to hold all the food and allow people to easily make a plate. We had plenty of wine on both tables because we all need easy access to that!
Cranberry and Sage Stuffed Turkey Roulade Bites
Roasted Butternut Squash Soup with Crème Fraîche
Shaved Brussel Sprouts with Bacon in Fillo Cups
Maple Sausage Cornbread Stuffing in Baked Apples
Mini Vanilla Stuffed Spice Cakes with Caramel
For the “Falling Leaves DIY” instructions, you can check it out here.
Madison | Wetherills Say I Do says
This is an amazing Friendsgiving. So many great ideas for decorations, recipes and diy’s! I’ll definitely be putting Cambria wine on my shopping list!
Dawn says
What a spread! Can I come to your house?
Alejandra says
wow can we be friends? Everything looks delicious and so beautiful, love all the small details.
R U S S says
You did an awesome job with this! I love your set-up, it’s so pretty and enticing. Im sure your friends appreciated everything you’ve done.
paula schuck says
Super cute! I love the pictures and they canapés are making me hungry. The wine looks great. I would love some right about now! Your menu is gorgeous and the squash soup – oh my gosh so pretty!
Eileen says
Great photos! I especially love your black board menu, it’s so fun!
Jennifer Corter says
Oh my goodness, this is an INCREDIBLE post! Everything is so beautiful! You did an amazing job! Plus, I love the word “Friendsgiving!” :)
Michelle Hwee says
Wow this is absolutely beautiful!! :) I love the colors and how it makes it seem like FALL is everywhere :) great job!!
Dawn McAlexander says
What a great party! I especially love your menu and the buffet. Gorgeous!
Fi Ní Neachtáin says
Wow, this looks so amazing! You did a fantastic job, everything down to the last detail is perfect! The menu board looks great and the falling leaves above the table give such a whimsical feel. I have to pin your post :)
Amanda @ Adorkablii says
Date and time please? Hehe. The food looks amazing and I love the set up!!!
Catherine S says
You did a fantastic job. Everything looks so pretty and the food looks amazing. I like the idea of doing something non-traditional every once in a while.
Giveaways 4 Mom says
I love the photos, everything looks amazing. I wish I could attend.
Heather says
I love the hanging leaves and the pumpkin candles! I think it would be great to host a “Friendsgiving”. What a great idea!
Ann BAcciaglia says
Your photos are unbelievable! I love your menu board and decorate. The food looks fantastic. I am sharing this with my friends.
Delia @ Happy Blogger Plaza says
I love the set up, what a wonderful job! And those fancy glasses? Just perfect :)
kendall says
Looks like an amazing party! Love the decor and table setting!
JoAnna says
Friendsgiving is the best – almost better than Thanksgiving with the family because there’s (usually) no drama! All of the food looks so delicious. I really like the menu that you wrote out on the chalkboard. This is very well done and I can tell that you worked very hard on it!
Jay says
Wow, I wanna be your friend and family. The decoration itself made me wonder if I’m reading about a home photo shoot of a magazine or something. And the finger food and wine is absolutely gorgeous. I’m an event planner besides my marketing job, so this kind of setup is really appreciated!
Melissa Vera says
What a beautiful set up and the food looks absolutely delicious. I so want to be invited to this party.
Franc Ramon says
Cambria looks like a perfect complement for parties. It would be nice to have small bites as it’s much easier to prepare and can be eaten by more people.
Terri Ramsey Beavers says
The menu sounds delicious. I have some Cambia wine I’m saving for Thanksgiving. I’d love to try some of your recipes.
Nancy says
Love the chalkboard menu you presented over the liquour cabinet. Your decorations were all so gorgeous.
I’m sort of having a freindsgiving too. My Canadian friends and I (We’re CDN too) are having thanksgiving together this year. It’ll be fun! I just got back from World Market stocking up on some decorations :)
Mama to 5 BLessings says
Looks like an incredible menu! What an amazing party!
Trisha says
I won’t be hosting Thanksgiving this year, my sister-in-law will be, but I could definitely bring along some of the menu items you mentioned. I think the Maple Sausage Cornbread Stuffing in Baked Apples would go over well with the family! I’ll have to bring some Cambria Wine as well.
Anna says
Everything looks so beautiful and delicious! I’m trying to think of how to do a Thanksgiving on a budget this year since our plans changed the past couple days :/.
Sandy says
What a great way to celebrate with friends. I love your bite sized snacks.
Celebdirtylaundry says
Such an amazing friendsgiving, the decorations look beautiful and the food looks so delicious!
Aisha Kristine Chong says
Such a wonderful look at everything there – so classy perfect for this friendsgiving!
cindy says
Wow this looks amazin! I want to go to Thanksgivin there! Picture perfect!
Krystal's Kitsch says
The chalkboard menu is AMAZING. I love the entire set up, and I’ve actually drank Cambria before!
Kerri says
Looks like a spectacular tablescape. I love having friends over during the holiday season.
Bonnie @ wemake7 says
Wow! You did an excellent job on your post and your pictures are awesome. Thanks for sharing.
Tiffany Hathorn says
First of all, how cool is the idea of having a Friendsgiving?! I think that your photos and setup is visually stunning. And the appetizers/drinks look tasty! Top notch, my friend.
Kristine @ Big Dreams, Shallow Pockets says
You did so good on this! It looks so cozy and inviting. That chalkboard menu is to die for! Seriously!
Danielle K says
I love the idea of having a Friendsgiving. Your spread looks amazing and I just love how you set it all up :)
Amanda {Planning It All} says
I’ve seen so many great Friendsgiving posts & yours is so beautiful; i want to try this trend next year!
Michelle says
Love your tables cape, the pops of blue and the entire concept!
Yona Williams says
Small bites and wine…what a perfect combination. I would love to create an arrangement like this one of these days. Maybe when my friends come up to visit from out of town.
Alana (@ I have a Future and a Hope) says
Your presentation is amazing! AMAZING! I love the small bites. I would love to come to this friendsgiving.
Jessica Doll says
This looks so great! Beautiful party! I don’t think I could turn down a friendsgiving that includes wine, haha.
Caroline says
This is my kind of entertaining! Love to entertain with tapas or appetizers and don’t forget the wine!!! Everything looked perfect and really tasty, I’m sure your guests were impressed. Good work!
Rubbie Anne Abad says
Your photos are to die for! Would love to go to such event
Kimberly says
Wine and Cheese trays are all the rage in our family this year. I love your pics!
Jen says
very pretty. I cant wait to use some of these ideas.
Erin says
I love everything about this! I’ve wanted to do a dinner party like this, but we simply don’t have the space in our apartment. Choosing the small bite-sized foods was an fantastic choice.
Patti says
Wow! Everything looks so lovely. Your guests are very lucky. I love your tablescapes and the chalkboard menu. The food looks delicious and I always enjoy a good Pinot.
Aisha LC says
That looks so good! My friends and I have a thanksgiving/Christmas together and this is a great thing to start doing instead of traditional dinner!
Joyce@MyStayAtHomeAdventures says
Oh my! These photos are amazing. Great ideas.
Ali says
OMG i love love love all of this. Now that our home is finally coming together I want to host a friendsgiving or ugly sweater party. This is just more party inspiration. Beautimous!
Jen @ The Halfway Homemaker says
Beautiful settings. The food looks delicious, too!
Jane says
Fabulous! I think there are some great ideas for couples getting married and want that quaint intimate feel.