Tips for a Great Summer B-B-Q

When it comes to having a party, food is the centerpiece of your event. But when it comes to summer recipes people usually limit themselves to the time-honored choices of hamburgers or hotdogs. But you can take everyone’s classic summer favorites and transform them into a feast of flavor by making a few simple adjustments.

Potato Salad-instead of using the traditional mayonnaise recipe, make this dish more figure friendly by using vinegar, salt, pepper, and some chopped scallions. Corn on the Cob-no bbq would be complete without it, but instead of smearing it with butter create a butter and garlic rub. Take a few chunks of butter and combine it with a little bit of olive oil, salt, pepper, and some minced garlic. Leave the corn covered in the mixture in the fridge.Then wrap it in aluminum foil and cook over the grill.
Burgers-keep the ground beef, but add a few table spoons of olive oil, salt, pepper and butter. Then dice one sweet onion and slice a few mushroom caps, mix and grill.

Shrimp- loose the cocktail sauce for an even more sophisticated take on shrimp. Get about 2 cups of cherry tomatoes (slice in half’s) and combine them in a bowl with salt, pepper, grate a small clove of garlic and some chopped fresh basil. SautÃ?© shrimp in a pan over high heat with a olive oil and add to tomato bowl.

For your dÃ?©cor, paper table cloths and bright yellow plastic plates just don’t scream “sophisticated affair” so instead try using cloth table cloths, you can find them for a few dollars at places like the Christmas Tree Shops or even Wal-Mart type stores. You can throw them in the wash and use them for next time. You can even find plates that are inexpensive and provide a festive compliment for your affair-but if doing the dishes is not your thing go for a neutral colored plate that will fit in on your table scape.

While we said food is your centerpiece you can get really creative with your actual centerpieces by using unconventional items. If it’s a summer party go to the dollar store and get a bunch of pales and shovels, sand toys, sea shells, and some sand-creating a memorable centerpiece for under $5.