Easy French Recipes
For Dinner Parties

Impress your guests with these easy French recipes. A French theme makes your dinner party elegant. You can show your French vacation pictures, play French music... you'll eat well and your guests will love you for it.

These easy recipes are perfect for entertaining. They have been passed down from my French chef father-in-law to my husband, Gildas and me. We love to entertain and this menu has always been a great hit.

Easy French Recipes- Menu 1 Serves 6

Melon au Porto - Melon with Port Wine

Filet de sole meuniere - Filet of Sole with herb butter sauce
Haricots verts - fresh green beans
Riz - rice

Salade - Salad

Assortiment de Fromage - Cheese assortment

Peche Melba - Peach Melba

These are easy French recipes because they require no technique, just organization of your time. I like to serve it during the season when the fruit is fresh and ripe. Other times of year you can simply substitute the melon with your favorite starter and use canned peaches for the Peach Melba, which I still find, is delicious.

In France food is an important part of the culture whether eating at home or at a restaurant. We’ve had fantastic food there.

Shopping List
3 small melons such as cantalope, charentais, or other fresh summer melon
1 ½ cups ruby port wine
1 ½– 2 ¼ lbs filet of sole (approximately 12 pieces)
1 ½ cups all purpose flour
Salt and pepper to taste
4 T cooking Oil
¼ lb butter (salted)
1 lemon
Parsley
1 cup dry white wine
1 lb French green beans or other variety
2 cups long grain rice
2 heads bib or butter lettuce
Vinegar and oil for salad dressing
French cheeses: brie, port salut, Roquefort
1 French baguette
3 sweet ripe peaches or canned peach halves = 6 halves
12 oz frozen raspberries
3 T sugar
1 quart French vanilla ice cream

The Easy French Recipes (serves 6)

Melon with Port Wine
3 small melons such as cantaloupe, charentais, or other fresh summer melon
1 ½ cups ruby port wine

Half melons, scoop out and discard the inside seeds, and set on plates.
Pour ¼ cup of wine in the hole of each melon.
Cover each melon loosely with plastic wrap.
Let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before serving.
Note: You may need to cut a small straight slice from the bottom of the melon halves to that they can sit level.

Steamed Rice
2 cups long grain rice
Boiling water
Salt

Bring water to a boil, put in rice and salt, cover. Follow package directions. After the rice is cooked add some butter and minced parley for color. Serve immediately.

Steamed Green Beans
1 lb. green beans

Snip off bottoms of the green beans (the French leave the tail). Steam green beans until tender, about 10 minutes. When cooked put in serving bowl with some butter. Serve immediately.

Filet of Sole Meuniere
1 ½– 2 ¼ lbs. filet of sole (approximately 12 pieces)
1 ½ cups all purpose flour
Salt and pepper to taste
4 T cooking oil
2 T butter
For the sauce:
Juice of ½ lemon
1 cup white wine
6 T butter

This easy French recipe is the authentic version from France.

Preheat oven to 200 degrees F.
In a shallow bowl put 1½ cups flour and salt and pepper.
Pat dry each filet and dust in flour till evenly coated, then remove to a plate.
In a large sauté pan heat oil and butter over med high heat.

When oil is starting to sizzle but not burned (no smoke coming off the pan) place filets in pan with enough room around the sides for each. Sauté till brown. Approximately 10 minutes on each side. Remove to a platter and place in oven, then repeat until all are cooked.

In the same sauté pan pour white wine and scrap all the dredging from the pan. Cook down wine to roughly half its volume.
Meanwhile mince parsley and set aside.
Add butter and juice of ½ lemon to sauce, blend well to thicken.
Add minced parsley.
Pour immediately over platter of fish and serve immediately.

Salade (In France, salad is served after the main course.)

2 heads soft lettuce such as Bib or Butter
Red wine Vinegar
olive oil
Dijon mustard
Salt and Pepper to taste

Traditionally the dressing in placed in the bottom of the bowl and stirred. Then, lettuce on top, and toss. That’s how Gildas does it. It coats the leaves and excess dressing is left on the bottom.

Wash and spin lettuce.
In the bottom of the salad bowl
Mix 1 part vinegar to 3 parts oil, ½ tsp. Dijon mustard, salt, and pepper. Toss salad just before serving.

Le Fromage (cheese)
Brie, port salut, Roquefort
French baguette

Place cheeses on a plate. Slice bread and serve in a basket.

In France cheese is classically served after the salad course but in practice at home most French eat their cheese with the salad.

Peche Melba (peach melba)
3 fresh peaches or 6 peach halves from a can
12 oz. frozen raspberries, thawed
1 quart vanilla ice cream
3 T sugar
1 T lemon juice

Peel fresh peaches.

Puree in food processor or blender: raspberries, sugar and lemon juice. After processing, strain through a fine meshed sieve. Using a rubber spatula, scrape the sides until you’re left with just the seeds. Discard the seeds.

To assemble:
Into 6 goblets or bowls place 1 scoop ice cream, then 1 peach half on top pit side down, top with raspberry sauce. Serve.

coffee or tea
In France, it’s traditionally served after, not with the dessert.

As I continue growing my website I will be adding more menus. To be sure you get the latest additions to my easy French recipes please subscribe to my sites’s feed.

Have a great party, and Bon Appetite!


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