4th of July Recipe Round-up

Independence Day is tomorrow and we are going to a BBQ pool party! We’ve been asked to bring a dish to share, and since the white peaches at the farmers market right now are soooo sweet, I was thinking of making this savory Peach Salad. It’s a bit unique, easy to make ahead, and great at room temperature.

Above is a little round-up of some of my favorite past recipes that I think would be fun to have at an outdoor summer gathering, like Radishes with Butter, Watermelon Bruschetta, and a refreshing Berry Fizz. Happy 4th!

By Erin Gleeson for The Forest Feast

Tofu Lettuce Wraps

It’s been in the high 90’s up here in the woods lately and this dish is a perfect hot weather snack. It works for lunch or dinner and can easily be made ahead. Any dressing works, but I used a soy sesame one. Might be fun to do a “lettuce wrap bar” for a dinner party, with lots of different filling options. What’s your favorite lettuce wrap filling?

By Erin Gleeson for The Forest Feast

You might also like: Lentil Lettuce Cups or this salad served in purple cabbage leaves

Cucumber Caprese Bites

Jonathan and I made a whole platter of these recently for a party and they were a hit! We cut the tomatoes and mozzarella balls in half to make them smaller bites. Perfect outdoor summer snack. Happy weekend!

You might also like:

Strawberry Caprese

Butternut Caprese

Cucumber Sangria

By Erin Gleeson for The Forest Feast

Summer Grilling

Our good friends and neighbors (who live just a short walk away here in the woods) had us over for a BBQ recently. It was a warm evening on their beautiful deck and it was fun to meet and hold their adorable new baby chicks!

We grilled lots of veggies but my favorite thing they put on the grill were artichokes! I’d never seen that before and they were delicious- brilliant idea. Just slice them in half and drizzle a little oil and salt. It’s best to steam them first to make them cook faster. Dip in a garlic aioli afterward (DIY: mayo + minced garlic). I also brought this Orange Avocado salad which was great with all the smoky veggies and cold beer.

For more summer grilling ideas, come to the Twitter party I’ll be part of TONIGHT from 7-8pm CST. A whole crew of food bloggers will be sharing summer BBQ menu ideas- should be good. My twitter handle is @theforestfeast. Follow the @BHG feed and look for #BHGGrilling.  Hope to “see” you tonight!

It's BBQ Time!

Jonathan recently asked me what my favorite meal ever was and I think I’d choose a big plate of BBQed eggplant, onions, portabellos and bell peppers, with some great sourdough bread, cheese (Delice de Bourgogne!) and avocado…YUM! Throw in some Deviled Eggs and a Blackberry Negroni (or some bubbly rose´) and I’m a very happy camper.

For more summer grilling menu ideas, join me and the other Better Homes and Gardens bloggers tomorrow night as we brainstorm fun BBQing recipes for an hour on Twitter. Coleman will even be giving away prizes! Hope to see you there!