Summer isn’t over yet! Get ready for backyard fun and tasty treats for young and old, with these great recipes and ideas from Lauren Lane Culinarian and LeAnne Parker. They have teamed up to create an easy-yet-elevated backyard party that will keep guests cool and children entertained. For more tips and tricks on hosting, cooking, and decorating, follow LeAnne on Instagram at @silvertoothhome and Lauren at @lauren_lane_culinarian.
To get your backyard looking its best, LeAnne suggests this cooling blue tablescape with thrifted blue goblets, Blue Willow dinnerware, woven placemats, white scalloped plate chargers, blue gingham ribbon accents, and natural wood charcuterie boards.
To stay cool, water is key, notes LeAnne. For the kids, freeze small plastic toys in muffin tins and make a game of who can free the toy first. Start an eco-friendly water “balloon” fight by filling a bucket with water and new, colorful sponges to throw. Additionally, check out LeAnne’s blog at silvertoothhome.com/celebrating-roses for ideas for using homemade rose water to create refreshing rose water lemonade and cooling rosewater facial spritz.
For the food, Lauren shares recipes for make-ahead sandwiches and no-bake dessert bites. To make the ice cream sandwiches, simply fill pairs of store-bought cookies with your desired flavor of softened ice cream and roll edges in miniature chocolate chips, nuts, or sprinkles. Wrap and freeze. Find more of Lauren’s recipes at lauren-lane.com.
Make-Ahead Italian Pressed Sandwiches
Ingredients
1 ciabatta baguette or loaf, cut in half horizontally
3 tablespoons butter
3 medium red peppers
3 cups arugula, spinach or mixed greens, rinsed and patted dry
1 ball of mozzarella, sliced thin
10 oz assorted Italian deli meats (I used soppressata salami and mortadella)
Olive oil
Italian seasoning
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon capers (optional)
Instructions
Roast the red peppers as follows: Set your pepper on cooktop flame or grill. Cook until they are mostly black, turning as needed. Place the peppers in a plastic or paper bag and let sit for 15 minutes. Remove peppers from bag and peel off the blackened skin. Discard the skin and slice the peppers in wide strips. Place in a bowl and drizzle with a bit of olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add a tablespoon of capers if using. Set aside.
Butter each piece of ciabatta and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place a generous layer of overlapping cold meats. Top with pepper strips. Add a layer of mozzarella slices, patted dry. Sprinkle generously with salt, pepper and Italian seasoning. Top with a generous layer of arugula. Top with ciabatta.
Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and place on platter. Top with heavy skillet or brick and refrigerate six hours or overnight. Slice to serve.
No-Bake Dessert Bites
Ingredients
1 store-bought pound cake
1 can of icing (I used buttercream)
Berries
Powdered sugar (optional)
Instructions
With a cookie cutter, cut slices of cake into squares or circles. Place icing in a plastic sandwich bag. Carefully snip the corner of the bag, being careful not to cut it too big. Squeeze dollops of icing onto each cake bite. Top with berries and dust with powdered sugar if desired.
