|
3
Jun
|
Sunday Funday – First BBQ & A Yummy Vegan Dessert! |
Here in the Northeast, last weekend’s weather loudly heralded in the unofficial start of summer, and I have to admit it came upon me way too fast. Not that I didn’t relish the three days of 80-degree, sunny bliss, but somehow I wasn’t mentally prepared to throw the season’s first party. Without much new in the way of inspiration, I turned to a couple old faves, and asked my friends to help with the rest.
People are always surprised by butternut squash in a summer side dish, but if you can get your hands on some, I guarantee that my Tropical Butternut Squash Salad will be a hit wherever you take it this season. If not, sweet potato will work too. It boasts a light and tangy yogurt-based dressing, but light coconut milk will work just fine for the dairy-free crowd. We also had a green salad packed with fresh farmers market veggies and gluten-free tabbouleh made with quinoa.
I lied. A little. I did have one new idea. It involved shrimp, grapes and avocado. More on that later!
And yes, that would be a blissfully fresh blueberry mojito in the background. I am spoiled.
For a little Recipe Remix, I made Spicy Mango Turkey Burgers by mixing a batch of my Roasted Mango Habanero Salsa with 2 1/2 lbs of ground turkey, a splash of soy sauce and some steak seasoning. I served them up with my new favorite condiment, Roasted Tomatillo-Avocado Sauce. This combo was a huge hit all around!
My plate 
For dessert, I served Leanne’s Nanaimo Bars which happen to be raw and vegan too. I’ve never had a non-raw, non-vegan nanaimo bar so I’m not really sure what they’re supposed to taste like, but these were absolutely heavenly – my friend Vanessa, a longtime lover of the real nanaimo bars wholeheartedly agreed (she claimed that the bottom and top layers were “accurate”, and the middle was “different” but still delightful.) Looking for a super-easy recipe that won’t fail to impress? This is it. I followed Leanne’s recipe pretty closely, only making a few small changes: I used cashew butter in the middle layer, and sweetened the top layer with a mixture of powdered erythritol and stevia. And you can bet I’ll be doing it again.
We all agreed that the nanaimo bars were a “sophisticated chocolate” so it was a good thing my friend Lindsay brought some brownies too. Because someone proved to be a real chocoholic. (I’m sure she would have gobbled up the nanaimo bars too, but we adults didn’t really want to share 
) Why is it that only toddlers can pull off looking so cute with chocolate smeared all over? So not fair
What’s been your favorite BBQ dish so far this year?
I'm Cara, lover of creative, clean food and healthy living. Pumpkin, goat cheese, and eggplant make me swoon. I have an insatiable sweet tooth and desire to lift heavy things. 
Cara - "I've never frozen them but I can't imagine why you couldn't ..."
Mara - "Hi! I have had this recipe bookmarked since you published it..."
Martha - "She's beautiful! She looks a lot like her mom. Congratulatio..."
Julia — June 3, 2012 @ 7:39 am
This entire feast looks amazing!!!! And, how convenient that I have a butternut squash sitting on my counter… and even a mango! Hmm, salad an salsa, here I come!!!!!
Ricki — June 3, 2012 @ 1:54 pm
Looks like such a great party! That weather was pretty phenomenal, wasn’t it? And I have to agree about toddlers and chocolate–I mean, I never get told I look cute when I smear it all over my face!!
Tera — June 3, 2012 @ 3:23 pm
Looks awesome! Great ideas all the way around!
Kerstin — June 3, 2012 @ 5:45 pm
What an amazing spread! Can’t wait to see that shrimp recipe
Kate — June 3, 2012 @ 7:01 pm
I don’t understand how it can be warm and summery by you and still so very cold by me!
Dawn — June 3, 2012 @ 8:38 pm
Wow what a party!!!! Awesome!
Frank — June 4, 2012 @ 5:56 pm
Your pictures look awesome. The food even better. I look forward reading your blog posts!