Cinderella Dinner

Cinderella may be the most iconic Disney princess ever! Characterized by grace, kindness, and beauty, Cinderella is also one of the most celebrated princesses. Host a magical Cinderella dinner fit for a princess with our easy and elegant party ideas, complete with a Cinderella themed dinner menu, and delicious recipes. Read on for all the details, recipes, and resources.

About Cinderella

Cinderella is set in France, probably sometime during the 17th century. There are many versions of the Cinderella fairytale, but Disney chose the one by French author Charles Perrault. Perrault is credited with including our favorite iconic elements – the fairy godmother, the pumpkin-turned-coach, the glass slippers – in his version.

Cinderella was created in 1950. The film was Walt Disney’s second princess-themed animated picture and its success was instrumental in solidifying Disney as one of the greats. One of Walt Disney’s favorite pieces of animation was when Cinderella was transformed out of her tattered pink dress into her elegant light blue ball gown.

the Tablescape & Decor

Some believe Cinderella was set during the month of June due the giant pumpkins featured in the film. We chose to host our Cinderella dinner during the fall, but it would be beautiful any time of year.

We were inspired by the scene in the film when Cinderella runs out into the garden and is visited by her Fairy Godmother. Lush flowers, vintage details and a garden setting give a nod to this magical scene. A blue tablecloth and gold accents pay homage to Cinderella’s glistening pale blue ballgown.

Do you recall the silhouette of the garden’s lush foliage in the moonlight? When we stumbled upon these beautiful blooms at our local farmer’s market, we couldn’t resist. We arranged big dahlias, mums, and hydrangeas in white, burgundy, and rose in a shallow bowl and nestled them among blue tapers in vintage brass candle holders.

Our place settings reflected the vintage theme. We used our ivory china centered atop gold chargers. A blue napkin, antique silver, simple stemware, and a white pumpkin completed the place setting.

Cinderella’s pumpkin carriage was so fun to create! The project requires only a few basic supplies – artificial pumpkins, a gold paint pen, gold spray paint, and a hot glue gun. The specific instructions can be found in Entertaining with Disney by Amy Croushorn, one of our favorite books.

The Menu

Our Cinderella themed menu was inspired by our favorite characters and elements in the film. Link to the recipes below.

"Blue Shoe" Mocktail

We were inspired by Cinderella’s glass slipper for our drink, but wanted to serve a non-alcoholic option. We stumbled upon a “Blue Shoe” recipe from Mix That Drink and thought it was perfect! This elegant party drink gets its beautiful blue hue from blue Hawaiian punch, white cranberry juice, and soda. Get the recipe here.

Roasted Vegetable & Blue Cheese Salad

Pumpkin Puff Pastries

This roasted vegetable salad is a favorite in our home! Roasted potatoes, beets, and sweet potatoes are nestled on a bed of greens, topped with crumbled blue cheese and Terra root vegetable chips, and drizzled with blue cheese dressing. Get our salad recipe here.

We served a delicious and adorable pumpkin puff pastry on the side. This recipe from Martha Stewart is so fun and easy for kids to create. Get her recipe here.

Pumpkin - Goat Cheese Ravioli

served with sauteed green beans

If you’ve never made homemade pasta, this is the perfect time to give it a try! Our simple recipe utilizes a food processor and basic pasta machine. We created pumpkin shaped ravioli with a small pumpkin cookie cutter, filled them with a delicious pumpkin-goat cheese mixture and topped the cooked ravioli with a simple brown butter, walnut, and sage sauce. Sauteed garlic green beans make a delicious accompaniment. Get our recipe here.

Cinderella Dessert Buffet

There are so many iconic characters in Cinderella and we just had to create treats to represent each of them. So, we ended up with not one, but five desserts. This buffet offers something for every taste and would make a lovely spread for a Cinderella themed bridal shower or tea party.

Jaq & Gus's Blackberry Cheesecake

Cheesecake seemed like the perfect way to represent our favorite duo of mice from the movie. A New York cheesecake was cut into 2-inch rounds using a biscuit cutter. Each round was topped with blackberry preserves, whipped cream, and a plump blackberry. I think Jaq and Gus would approve! Our favorite New York cheesecake recipe is from Martha Stewart.

Cinderella's Chocolate Mousse Cake

This chocolate cake recipe belongs to my Granny Snow White. She was an avid chocolate lover and gifted baker. Chocolate mousse is sandwiched between the layers of cake and topped with Cinderella blue buttercream. This cake is a chocolate lover’s dream! It’s rich, moist, and delicious. Get our recipe here.

Happily Ever After Madeleines

Madeleines are a quintessential French dessert. These little delicacies are actually a small cake. We dipped ours in Cinderella blue candy melts and dotted them with candy pearls. Get this excellent madeleine recipe from Sally’s Baking Addiction.

Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Blue Cakepops

These cake pops honor the Fairy Godmother. Judging by the name, you might expect them to be filled with blue velvet cake. But, just like the Fairy Godmother, we have a surprise for you! These delicious cake pops are filled with pumpkin spice cake and enveloped in a crunchy Cinderella blue candy coating. The cake pops are sprinkled with magical fairy dust and topped with a beautiful golden butterfly. Get our easy recipe here.

Prince Charming's Pumpkin Spice Trifles

Prince Charming is so noble and handsome! We created these delicious trifles in his honor. Pumpkin spice cake is layered with maple infused whipped cream and candied pecans. The tops are drizzled with salted caramel and sprinkled with gold pearls. So delicious! We served these mini trifles in our favorite Tableluxe tasting glasses.