Summer Party

This summer I am in charge (along with my husband and brother in-law) of the food for a party of about 50 people. Fortunately this is going to be a laid back afternoon barbecue.

Here is our menu:

Barbequed meats (we are buying these from a local restaurant because of time constraints)
Pea Salad
Tomato, Mozzarella, and Basil Salad
Potato Salad
Sliced Melons (watermelon and cantaloupe)

Potato Salad
5 medium potatoes
2 hard boiled eggs
1/3 cup coarsely chopped dill pickle
1/2 cup diced onion
1/2 cup Miracle Whip*
2 Tablespoons of pickle juice
Seasoning salt to taste
Pepper to taste

Peel potatoes and cut them into bite size pieces. I usually peel half of my potatoes and leave the skin on half–I like the texture of the skin but I don't like too much. Bring a large pot of water to boil; add the potatoes. Cook until tender but not too soft (you don't want them to break up when you mix the ingredients). Drain potatoes and place them in a large bowl.

Chop the eggs and add them to the potatoes. Add the remaining ingredients. Stir well to mix. Serve warm or chilled.

*You may need to adjust the amount of Miracle Whip to suit your taste–if you like your potato salad a little dry, use less. If you like it really moist, use more.

With all of these dressing filled salads, we will have the issue of keeping them cool. We are going to place the serving dishes in large bowls filled with ice. This will help keep them cool and ward off spoiling.

Now that we have gotten the main dish and sides figured out, we need to think about dessert. My favorite part

Easy Summer Salad: Tomato, Mozzarella, and Basil Salad

I have always been intimidated by this super simple salad. It is so elegantly simple and it uses an exotic cheese (OK, so I know fresh mozzarella isn’t exotic for most people but for a farm girl from West Texas it is exotic).

What I love about this salad is how beautiful and fresh it is. Nothing beats fresh tomatoes in summer and this is a great way to showcase them. I got my tomatoes at a local farmers market—the grocery store variety just can’t compare.

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cost: cheese $2.50, tomatoes $1.50 Total: $4.00

Tomato, Mozzarella, and Basil Salad
2 large tomatoes
½ pound fresh mozzarella
10 fresh basil leaves
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1-2 cloves garlic
Salt and pepper to taste

Slice tomato and mozzarella into ¼ inch slices. Arrange sliced tomato and cheese on a platter alternating between the two. Season with salt and pepper. Scatter basil leaves on top. In a small bowl, whisk together the lemon juice and olive oil. Drizzle over tomatoes and cheese. Serve immediately or chill and serve later.

Pea Salad

Summer time means lots of pea salad for me. I love pea salad. It is a tasty and easy no cook side dish. Serve it with barbeque or sandwiches. Despite the onions, my toddler even likes this (most kids like peas).

Pea Salad
2 cups frozen peas, thawed
1/3 cup light salad dressing (like Miracle Whip) or more to taste
1/2 cup diced cheddar cheese (dice it real small or use shredded)
1/2 cup diced tomato or red bell pepper
1/4 cup diced onion
Salt and Pepper to taste

Mix well and serve chilled.

Tips: I never actually measure any of the ingredients. I just start chopping and mixing. You can also substitute most hard cheeses for the cheddar. If you are making this in advance and need to keep it cold, make it with the peas still frozen. The frozen peas will help it stay cold longer.

Barbecued Pork Chops

We are originally Texans, from around Dallas to be precise (we just moved to Denver 6 months ago). Around Dallas, the weather is so warm that you can grill outside 10-11 months out of the year. And we took advantage of that. We grilled a lot but we never grilled pork (other than sausage). So grilling barbecued pork chops was an experiment. Grilling is great for when you have company. It is relaxing, quick, and easy to make large quantities.

Menu:
Barbequed Pork Chops with Homemade Barbecue Sauce
Grilled Yellow Squash
Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Peas

Total Prep and Cooking Time: 30 minutes for homemade barbecue sauce and 35 minutes for meal
Total Cost:$8 (it made enough to feed 4)

Jack Daniels Barbeque Sauce
1/2 onion, minced
4 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 cup Jack Daniels
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 tablespoon salt
2 cups ketchup
1/4 cup tomato paste
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons liquid smoke flavoring (optional–I don’t like liquid smoke)
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 teaspoon hot pepper sauce, or to taste or 1 teaspoon horseradish

In a large skillet over medium heat, combine the onion, garlic, and Jack Daniels. Simmer for 10 minutes, or until onion is translucent. Mix in the black pepper, salt, ketchup, tomato paste, vinegar, liquid smoke, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, and hot pepper sauce (or horseradish). Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer for 20 minutes.

Note: You can use store bought sauce. But this is a quick, easy, and delicious recipe.

Barbecued Pork Chops
1-2 cups Barbeque Sauce
4 Pork Chops

Coat pork chops with barbeque sauce. Place on hot grill. Grill each side for 10 minutes. Occasionally coat with additional sauce.

Note: If you are using an indoor grill pan, like I do, be sure to coat it with nonstick spray. The excess sauce will burn onto the pan and be impossible to get off. Needless to say, I learned this the hard way and I now have a new grill pan

Grilled Squash
Summer Squash and Zucchini
Olive Oil 1-2 Tbsp
Salt and Pepper

Slice squash and zucchini. In a large bowl, mix olive oil and salt and pepper. Add squash and zucchini; stir to coat with oil. Place squash on grill. Grill for about 5-10 minutes (depending on how thick you cut the squash).

Whole Wheat Bagels: Manna from Heaven

According to my two year old whole wheat bagels are a gift from God. They are currently her food de jour. I have been buying her Pepperidge Farms 100% Whole Wheat Mini Bagels. This is one of those rare occasions that I feel really good about what she is eating. Each bagel is 100 calories, .5 grams of fat, and 3 grams of fiber. Toddlers are a persnickety breed and it is a rarity for them to latch on to something that is good for them. 

I also really like these bagels. They are nice and chewy, and the whole wheat taste is great in a bagel. They taste great topped with peanut butter, cream cheese, or sugar and cinnamon (my daughter's favorite).  And my infant daughter, who is teething, thinks these are the best chew toys.