I'm taking part in a blog series to help you plan and throw the best BBQ this summer. Follow the below links for the all the tips, tricks, and recipes!
Step 1: Planning {Dawn of Joyful Scribblings}
Step 2: Decor / Tablescapes {Cathy of Creations by Cathy}
Step 3: Appetizers {Chelsea of Whatcha Makin' Now?}
Step 4: Main Dishes and Sides {Nicole of Daily Dish Recipes}
Step 5: Desserts!!! {Katie of What Katie's Baking}
Step 6: What to wear {Ginny of My New Favorite Outfit}
Now to my section....
Let's talk appetizers. A lot goes into planning and throwing a party and people always come hungry. The appetizers don't need to take you days to make; the simplest recipes can bring loads of flavor and keep your quests satisfied until the main dish is served!
I choose these 3 appetizers because of the simple ingredients and ease of preparation. The majority of the the prep work can be done a couple days in advance. Then recruit a family member, friend, or one of your kids to assemble the day of the party.
Mini BLT's with Sweet Sauce
1 lb cooked bacon
8 or so lettuce leafs (iceberg or romaine)
2 medium tomatoes
16 or more slices of bread (1 slice makes 2 sandwiches)
1/2 cup mayo
2 tbsp thousand island dressing
1 1/2 tbsp sweet pickle relish
pinch of salt
decorative tooth picks
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place slices of bread on a cookie sheet. Bake for 3-4 minutes, remove from oven and flip each slice of bread to the other side, return to the oven and bake another 3-4 minutes or until 'toasted'. Set toasted bread aside.
Meanwhile, in a small dish combine the mayo, thousand island dressing, sweet pickle relish, and pinch of salt. Set aside.
Using a knife or a pizza cutter to cut each slice of bread into 4 square pieces.
Time to make the sandwiches! Spread sauce on each square of bread. Place 1/2 a piece of bacon, 1/2 a tomato slice, and a piece of lettuce on one side of the sandwich. Top with another square of bread. Secure layers by sticking a decorative toothpick down the center of the sandwich. Continue process until all of the sandwiches are made.
Makes about 32 mini sandwiches.
Helpful Hints:
~Prepare the sauce, bacon, lettuce, and slice tomatoes a day or so in advance to save time.
~I would not toast your bread until the day of the party to prevent it from being too dry.
Cold Veggie Pizza
2 cans (8 oz) refrigerated crescent rolls
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon dried dill weed
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
1 1/2 cups chopped broccoli
1 1/2 chopped cauliflower
1 1/2 cup chopped cucumber
1 cup shredded carrots
Remove crescent rolls from packaging and break into the pre-cut sections. Use a knife and cut each triangle into 3 pieces. (They won't all be the exact same size, but you're going for appetizers so small is okay!) Bake dough according to packaging, but subtract 3-4 minutes from the recommended baking time. Remove from the oven when golden brown. This will give a nice little crust but keep the middle soft. Set aside to cool.
Meanwhile, use your electric mixer to combine the cream cheese, sour cream, dill weed, and garlic powder until smooth.
Spread a nice thick layer of the cream cheese mixture on each piece of cooled bread. Sprinkle with a variety of the chopped veggies and press down so they stick.
Store in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Makes about 32 little pizzas.
Helpful Hints:
~All components of this appetizer could be made a few days in advance and then just assembled on the day of the party.
~There might be leftover chopped veggies; add those to a salad you're serving so they don't go to waste! ~You could really use any type of veggie; tomatoes, radishes, etc so feel free to put your won twist on it!
Ants on a Log, 2 ways (kid friendly!)
10-15 celery stalks
4 oz cream cheese*, softened
4 oz creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup craisins
Clean celery stalks and cut each stalk into 3 to 4 inch sticks.
Fill 1/2 of the sticks with cream cheese (as little, or as much as you'd like) and and then top with craisins.
Fill the other 1/2 of the celery sticks with cream peanut butter (as little, or as much as you'd like) and top with raisins.
Store in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
Helpful Hints:
~You could use other flavored cream cheeses too. I'm a fan of pineapple cream cheese and strawberry cream cheese in celery.
~These could be made a day before the party and would still look and taste great.
Ways to Serve:
- Place 6-8 of each appetizer on a variety of platters (different shapes, sizes, and colors) and place throughout the backyard. This will allow people to visit and snack while waiting for the main dish.
- A 3-Tiered Dessert Pedestal
or something similar would also be fun! You could wrap in colored ribbon to match your other decor.
- If it's super hot outside, these Freezable Serving Platters
would work great!
- But this might just take the cake! It's an Inflatable Salad Bar
- fill with ice and place serving bowls right on the ice. Genius. It's under $10.00 too!
- Maybe you could even use a pool inflatable the same way! Place a baby pool on a round table, fill with ice, and then place bowls and beverages on the ice.
I hope you enjoy this series! We'd love you feedback - should we do more of these in the future? What topics would you enjoy?