My Go-to Barbecue Recipes

A local friend of mine who reads my blog commented that besides the girls' birthday parties, I rarely show the other home entertaining I do.  Honestly, I never really thought about sharing anything else, mainly because the other entertaining I do doesn't involve cute decor and fun party photos.  But this past weekend presented an opportunity...

This past weekend we had a few of my husband's clients over for a barbecue and it gave me the perfect opportunity to share the go-to recipes I use when I don't want to serve burgers and hot dogs for the umpteenth time!  Because, really, by the end of the Summer I'm a little burgered out!  But these recipes are so easy, and make such a nice presentation, I think they're worth passing along.

Appetizer: Cucumber Cups with Roasted Pepper Hummus

You always need an easy, quick appetizer.  Start off by peeling an English (seedless) cucumber.  Cut them a little on the thicker side. With a tiny spoon or melon baller, scoop a little dent in the center, and then drop in the hummus.  It's a great little summer bite.

And I have to share with you this awesome tray I have that helped keep the cucumbers cold... it's a tray with three removable "ice packs."  You freeze the ice packs, place them right into the tray insert before serving. It's awesome.

I got this as a freebie through work ages ago, so unfortunately I don't have a buying source for you.  But I found some alternative cold serving trays here.

Side Dish: Along with corn on the cob, and a green leaf lettuce salad, I made this Greek Pasta Salad.  I used mini farfalle pasta (a.k.a. butterfly or bow tie pasta) with chick peas, crumbled feta cheese, sliced black olives, grape tomatoes and cucumbers, all brought together with a bottled greek salad dressing.  An easy dish you can make in advance.

The main entree: Grilled Bruschetta Chicken.  I have been making this for a few years now, and it always comes out moist and is always a hit.  In fact, half of the platter was gone before I remembered to take a photo! It's grilled chicken topped with a mixture of sun-dried tomato salad dressing, basil, chopped tomatoes and shredded mozzarella--grilled chicken with an Italian twist!  It's actually a Kraft Foods recipe, and you can find the recipe here.

And finally for dessert, I made the Raspberry Pretzel Salad that I've posted before.  Despite my blurry photo, it was yummy. (By the time I pulled the dessert out, I'd had a little too many daquiris! Shaky hands!)  This is a nice, light dessert for a summer night.  The recipe I used is here.

What I especially love about each one of these recipes is that they're colorful and relatively healthy (or lower in calories than other barbecue favorites).  It was a fun night and the clients left happy!

Do you have any go-to recipes??  I'd love for you to share.  And please let me know if you are interested in seeing any more of my (non-party) home entertaining!

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