Now that summer’s here and the garden is bursting with life, I’m excited to start hosting get-togethers again. To keep things easygoing, I put together a simple and refreshing menu, all cool, delicious and easy as everything could be made ahead so there was no stress on the day. I prepped all the ingredients, chopping, slicing, dicing and stashed them in the fridge until it was time to throw everything together. The only thing I left for the morning of our dinner was baking the dessert.
Here’s what we had for our summer dinner:
Small Bites
We kicked off the night with a mix of cold, hot, and spicy snacks. They looked great, were perfect for eating outside, and paired really well with the Rosé wine that we had served. It set a fun tone for catching up and enjoying each other’s company.
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Appetizer
Next up was a cool watermelon salad, which is always a crowd-pleaser. While everyone chatted in the garden, I quickly put the salad together in the kitchen, thanks to prepping everything the day before. Once the table was ready, we moved right into the first course.
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Main Course
For the main course, I served grilled pork tenderloin over a Spanish-style white bean and bell pepper salad. I’d grilled the pork earlier in the day and let it rest at room temp, so all I needed to do after the salad was slice it up and plate it.
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Dessert
We wrapped things up with pineapple upside-down cake, super moist and full of summer flavour, with a scoop of coconut ice cream on the side.
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