Big Backyard Barbecue Baby Shower

After recovering from pork fest 2010, I had to gear up for a backyard barbecue baby shower for one of my besties, Amani. Co-party chef, Cheryl, and I made a bunch of tasty salads, kebabs, and bevies for one hot day. Since we didn't use any recipes, I am providing more of a visual documentation of our buffet. I did manage a separate attempt at the orzo salad today because it was actually pretty tasty and would be nice to have waiting in the fridge on a hot day.

Normally I hate pasta salad because the experience of eating it reminds me of eating Twizzlers, but without the "cherry" flavor. Chewy starch that's under-salted and generally under-flavored is not my idea of a good use of calories (unless the chewy starch is covered in pesto). However, using a smaller pasta like orzo and intensely flavored ingredients like sundried tomatoes and Kalamata olives helps to make every bite delicious.

Full disclosure: This second round of making the orzo salad was actually my third. On Friday night while doing prep, I overcooked the orzo while attempting to make 4 full boxes in a single stock pot. (I didn't realize that I wouldn't then be able to lift the pot of boiling orzo. Ooops.) This latest version didn't turn out quite like the first time, or even the second time, probably because I wasn't stressed out that guests would be arriving while I was still making it. Perhaps adrenaline is the missing ingredient.


White wine sangria with peaches, nectarines, and plums and strawberry lemonade. We made a watermelon lemonade after that ran out...

Watermelon feta salad

Cucumber salad with yogurt, mint, and garlic

Orzo salad

The grilled veggies were cooked on separate skewers for even cooking...onion kebabs, squash kebabs, red pepper kebabs...then unskewered for serving.

Chicken and hangar steak were marinated overnight in olive oil, lemon peel, garlic, parsley, oregano, and a tiny squeeze of lemon juice. The kebabs were skewered then seasoned with salt and pepper right before grilling.



Summer Orzo Salad

1 (16-ounce) box dried orzo
1 pint cherry tomatoes, quartered or 5 plum tomatoes, diced
2 (6-ounce) jars marinated artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
1/2 cup finely chopped Kalamata olives
1 (8.5-ounce) jar sundried tomatoes packed in oil, finely chopped
1 cup crumbled feta, goat cheese, or cubed fresh mozzarella
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
Juice of half a lemon
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
15 fresh basil leaves, chopped

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the orzo and cook according to package directions, until al dente, about 8 minutes. Strain into a colander and run under cold water until cool. Drain thoroughly.

2. Add the tomatoes, artichokes, olives, and cheese to a large bowl. Stir to combine. Add the cooked orzo, olive oil, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and basil. Stir, taste and adjust the salt and pepper as needed. Serves 8.

Le Mystère

Last night, I went out with fabulous bloggers, WendyB and ThumbelinaFashionista (as well as my good friend, Jen!), and we tried on and purchased many gorgeous francis items. We then went out for (mystery) drinks and snacks. Lucky for us, CFR joined us as well. But check out the menu! They are totally copying my post from yesterday! (How did they know? I thought only my mother read this blog.)

Stay tuned. Next week I will post my own version of the mystery drink below. It's going to be aMAZing.

Chill Out

It's gettin' hot in herrrrre! Africa hot. That's the problem with a south facing apartment. The light is great but it's a freakin' oven! What's that you say? Turn on the A/C? Oh, silly. I'm holding out until August. Why? Because I like to suffer! And my Con Ed bills go completely out of control the minute I turn it on. (I swear I'm paying for someone else's too!) Plus, it's been a relatively cool summer so far, so I'm just trying to make it...A. Few. More. Days. But feel free to slap me when I start complaining about how tired I am because I'm too uncomfortable to sleep, or that I wake up in a puddle of sweat. On the plus side, it makes me want to spend ALOT of time in the very air conditioned gym.

What does any of this have to do with anything? Well, I won't cook when it's hot, so it's either a bowl of cereal, frozen yogurt, or Rosé for dinner. Except that I still have that yellow watermelon kicking around. Another no-cook savory solution for that lovely piece of produce is to make a soup. (Thanks for the idea, Wendy!) But not a sweet dessert soup. A cold, gazpacho type soup. I basically used the same ingredients that I used in the salad (with a few tomatoes thrown in) and just threw it all in a food processor. Voilà! (Ain't it purdy?)



Yellow Watermelon Gazpacho

3 cups cubed yellow watermelon (seeded and rind removed), plus 2 tablespoons diced
4 Roma tomatoes, quartered
1 small shallot (peeled and halved)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon red (or white) wine vinegar
1 small jalapeño, diced (stemmed and seeded)
Crumbled feta (optional)
Fresh chopped cilantro (optional)

1. Puree the 3 cups of watermelon, tomatoes, shallot, lemon juice, and vinegar in the bowl of a food processor (or blender) until smooth. Add the jalapeño and pulse once. Divide the soup into bowls and top with the feta, cilantro, and reserved diced watermelon, if desired. Serves 4 as an appetizer.

Thirsty? Eat a watermelon.

After a brunch that included way too many french fries (is that even possible?) I was parched. When I got home I downed half a bottle of Vitamin Water 10 and several glasses of water, but I was still thirsty. Surprisingly, after eating a few pieces of watermelon, I was instantly refreshed. Maybe it was the magical yellow hue that did the trick. Check it:



These little yellow babies are round (rather than oblong) and just a bit smaller that a volleyball. I found mine at my local farmers market on the way home from the gym. Some say the yellow variety is sweeter than the ubiquitous pink variety, and a little more canteloupe-like, but I thought it just tasted like a watermelon.

What to do with it? Well, shockingly I had ripped out a watermelon recipe from In Style a few weeks ago. Yes. In Style. Seriously. After a little more research (because I was skeptical) I found that Gourmet had printed the same recipe a few years ago. It's from a restaurant in Athens, GA called Five & Ten. (I guess this is where I would ordinarily reference R.E.M. but I'm not going to. This time.) I love the idea of using watermelon in this savory salad. Once again I was missing a few ingredients so I subbed in garlic for a shallot and a jalapeño for a serrano chile. I also think that some sort of nut might add a nice crunch. Macadamias? Toasted pine nuts? Just a thought.

I still have about 3/4 of that watermelon volleyball. I'll either have to try to make some sort of watermelon bevie, or work on my knife skills and carve an intricate basket that rivals Edible Arrangements.



Yellow Watermelon and Feta Salad

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon champagne vinegar (or white wine vinegar)
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme (or 1/2 tsp dried thyme)
1 small shallot, minced (or one small garlic clove, minced)
1 serrano (or jalapeño) chile, stemmed and sliced into small half rounds
Salt, to taste
1/2 of a small yellow (or pink) watermelon (remove seeds)
1/4 pound piece of feta cheese, sliced into 1/8" pieces
Arugula

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the oil, lime juice, vinegar, thyme, shallot, and chile. Season with salt to taste. Set aside.

2. Slice the watermelon into pieces about 1/2-inch thick. Remove the rind. Cut the remaining watermelon flesh into 3-inch squares.

3. Assemble the salad on a platter by alternating layers of watermelon and feta on a bed of arugula. Drizzle with the vinaigrette. Serves 4 as an appetizer.