Holiday Recipe Notebook ~ Summer Party ~ 3/9

[Connie Angela]

I love summer! I love the smell of food grilling and having a cold drink while sitting in the sun! My kids are going to take swimming lessons this summer so I'm hoping that we spend lots of time at the pool.

Let's start with thecocktails!

Here are some great summer party ideas from Oprah!

Here are some family friendly summer recipes!

I talked to my Boss (Chief Financial Officer/Husband) about getting patio furniture so that we can have some people over for a BBQ this summer!!

 

[luludou]

Tfs

 

[teachermomof2]

We spend most of our summer on the patio or at the lake at our camp and on the boat.

Our favorite drinks are lemonade and iced tea. For the adults it is definitely the Strawberry Margarita.

Our favorite Summer Party foods include: Italian Pasta Salad, Lemon Basil Grilled Chicken, Italian BBQ Grilled Chicken, Taco Salads, Fiesta Roll ups and Turkey Wrapsand fresh fruit.

Brownies are always a hit for dessert.

Lisa

 

[momof4]

My menu definitely changes for summer! We do a lot of grilling. I'll often grill extra steak or chicken to use in big salads on another night. We also do taco salads and various sandwiches (often with leftover grilled meat and veggies too). Here is one recipe I've used for a few summers now. We love it.

Spinach & Chicken Pasta Toss
1 pkg. Kraft Italian Pasta Salad mix, made according to pkg. directions OR the equivalent of your own pasta salad
3/4 c. Italian dressing
1 lb. chicken, cut in bite size pieces
1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes
fresh baby spinach
1 c. shredded mozzarella
8 slices bacon, cooked & crumbled

Heat dressing over medium heat; add and cook chicken 5-7 minutes or until done. In serving bowl, toss pasta salad, cooked chicken, tomatoes, fresh spinach, cheese, and bacon.

 

[Cathymac]

That Oprah resource is great! I love the party tips-good ideas there! Thanks for sharing..just what my weary, cold bones need to warm up and get outside!

 

[stars29]

.........................

 

[Gingerbug]

The theme for our big Summer Bash this year is PIRATES I haven't a clue as to the menu...what kind of foods would be pirate like to you?????

 

[luludou]

Ok, here's a menu plan from about.com http://entertaining.about.com/cs/appetizerrecipes/a/pirateparty_2.htm,

...fish (could be fish & ships), hard biscuits, dessert with rhum,http://www.cooks.com/rec/search?q=rhum+butter+cake, watermelon boathttp://www.diynetwork.com/diy/td_centerpieces/article/0,,DIY_14377_2276013,00.html,...

here are some ideas for a pirate party http://www.piratetreasure.org/pirat...ngs, jokes, names, very nice treasure map....

 

[chilli]

Summer without Smooties is not possible (for me ;-))

So I found some recipes:
http://allrecipes.com/Recipes/Drinks/Sm ... /Main.aspx

What I also like is this noodle salad; I always prepare it for barbecues and picnics and it has
the big, big, big advantage, that it is without mayonnaise or other salad cream. So you don't
need to be afraid of salmonella. My hubby and my friends love it!

For 6 servings you need:

3 pepper (green, red, yellow), cubed
1 cucumber, cubed
4 large tomatoes, cubed
1 can corn
shallots, cutted
mixed herbs
salad dressing made of vinegar, salad oil, etc
1.10229 pounds (0.5 kg) of noodles (eg spiral noodles)

cook the noodles and let them cool down
mix the cubed vegetables with corn herbs and marinades - steep it for 10min
add the noodles and stir it; steep it again for appr. 20min

 

[momof4]

Not sure about food, but my son had a pirate birthday party and we served root beer as our ale.

 

[teachermomof2]

Last week I attended the Taste of Home Cooking Show. They had some wonderful summer recipes in their magazines. The Sangria recipes made me long for summer.

http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/White-Sangria
http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Fruity-Sangria

As soon as warm weather appears I'm going to try them.

Lisa