summer party time
August 14, 2024
We had such a fun party last weekend, our somewhat annual BLT party, that is a bacon, lettuce, and tomato sandwich party for the uninitiated. We meant to have a few outdoor parties this summer but only managed to get this one in. Does that ever happen to you? High hopes for summer fun only to find that summer is just weeks away from being over and you haven't done all you meant to do? Please come on in and let me share the good times we managed to squeeze in!
After living here for 40 plus years, I finally had the genius idea of making my flower arrangements right in the middle of the garden. Why haven't I done this before? I brought my vases out and then I was just steps away from the flowers, and any mess I made was thrown right into the wheelbarrow. No mess in the kitchen and no running back and forth to the garden!
But I'm getting a little ahead of myself, the flowers were one of the last things I did for the party. The very first thing we did was to send out email invitations to my husband's Wednesday golf buddies and their wives two weeks prior. This is a super fun group of people who know each other well and love to party. We had it on a Sunday night because we thought with such late notice more people would be available. All 18 could come. Start time was 6PM and the weather was perfect. We set up the drinks table outside under a portable umbrella. Below is the wine table before the actual wine was placed. Next to this was a small table for mixers, gin, vodka, scotch and some non alcoholic beverages. We are casual hosts and while we're happy to pour and serve, for the most part our guests help themselves.
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| A beautiful bouquet of tufted, dinner plate and anemone flowered dahlias, plus fennel fronds. |
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| We love spiced nuts on the drinks table and I love to make them. I have several recipes and you can find this Spiced Candied Nuts recipe below. We also passed around Panko Shrimp from Costco. It comes in a large box and we used the entire box for 18 people. If you live near a Costco and are not buying their panko shrimp, you should! They are a definite crowd pleaser. For a dipping sauce we use the incredible Mae Ploy Sweet Chili Sauce. |
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| Just off sight we have a large bar where I placed the dinner plates, toast and mayonnaise. After our guests made their toasts they came to the buffet table to make their sandwiches. Both sides of the table were identical so the line could move twice as quickly. The first platter had the lettuce, then next to that, sliced tomatoes. Next was the all important bacon flanked by small bowls of cucumber salad, homemade pickles, and larger bowls of my mom's potato salad. At the end I had bread boards and sharp knives so you could cut your sandwich in half. The buffet table was colorful and gorgeous, but alas, at that point I was too busy to think about grabbing my camera. Everything was made the day before, including the bacon, which we bake and is the easiest way to make crispy bacon. Right before serving I have to admit it's a bit of a mad rush as we are toasting bread in the oven and heating up the bacon in the oven too. Luckily we have two ovens, but it was tricky for those precious few minutes before calling everyone to the buffet table. |
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| I placed some beautiful bouquets around the house. Here are cosmos, zinnia, dahlias and fennel fronds. |
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| We grow tomatoes and is the reason why we have this party every year, however, if you don't have a garden, farm stands, farmer's markets and even some grocery stores now widely carry local, vine ripened heirloom tomatoes. |
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| We were able to put three tables and seat 18 on the covered patio just off our bedroom. The tables were preset with water glasses, napkins and forks. Before dinner my husband filled the water glasses and put a bottle of wine on each table. People came to the table with their wine glasses. |
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| I placed a basket of blankets near the tables but the weather was so nice there were no takers. |
After dinner I passed around brownies that I make even more decadent by icing with this recipe, (we had leftovers and heaven help me, I'm eating one now) chewy cowboy cookies, another crowd pleaser and a cookie I love to make because I can keep the cookie dough logs in the freezer, and sliced apples which are always welcome at the end of a meal. Last year I made these party poppers with treats and a "thoughtful question" inside. It's so fun! I did the same thing this year for a different group and so was able to use the same questions. People love it and it's a nice way to end the evening.
So what else did I do for the party besides cook the food and arrange the flowers? Well, I won't lie, I was busy. I washed all the windows inside and out and cleaned the house until it sparkled. I shouldn't have bothered because every single guest walked straight through the house to the garden because no one wants to be inside when the weather is so nice. I also dead headed and weeded for days, plus washed all the outdoor furniture and cushions. Do people notice? I don't think so, but the aftermath of the party means we get to enjoy a sparkling house and a weed free garden for at least the next week or two. I even washed the outside and inside of the greenhouse and no one even came close to noticing that! At least I did. 😏
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| We put the cornhole out that I got my husband for Father's Day and it got a little action during happy hour. |
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| For the life of me I cannot find the source for the spiced nuts recipe. It's one of our favorites. |
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8 Comments
I always love your party posts. So inspiring!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much Martha!
DeleteI read this post with a glass of fake beer after prepping for dinner and before actually cooking it. It was so relaxing after 30 minutes of chopping, cutting, seasoning, etc. and your mixed bouquet of flowers are gorgeous. My favorite way to arrange flowers. Chloe
ReplyDeleteQuestions, what fake beer do you like? It seems so festive to have a drink while chopping and prepping. Also, what were you making? I'm so nosy! As for the flowers, any ideas I have ahead of time about how I'll arrange flowers seems to fade away and I always make mixed bouquets. Luckily I love them.
DeleteBeautiful ideas and photos. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteHi Sharon! Thank you.
DeleteYour tables and flower arrangements look beautiful. Such a great idea for a party given by a couple who love to garden and grow magnificent tomatoes.
ReplyDeleteAww, thanks Carole. You know I love to throw parties and I can't believe we only managed one this summer!
DeleteYou make my day when you make a comment!