Kitchen

[Harpa]

I would love to hear your fab ideas! Side things as well as dessert (that I'd rather buy than make - scrunchy face.)

TY!

[lolakimono]

broccoli salad

fresh mozzarella/tomato/basil salad

roasted veggies

fruit salad

cold soup like gazpacho

[goodstuff]

A colorful fresh veggie tray with assorted dips, pretty deviled eggs, some fancy little gherkin pickles and olives, a fresh fruit platter, and a dessert or two. You could throw in a cheese tray with assorted toasted breads and/or crackers, too. A couple of nice chilled bottles of white wine to go along.

[NJgirl 1205]

Chicken salad is very basic but you can dress it up with some pretty greens and serve it on small croissants, which always make sandwiches feel more special. I think a nice anti-pasta is always a nice touch and you can pick up many of those items from most supermarkets which now have those olive bars (including mozzarella balls, roasted peppers, etc.). Add good prosciutto rolls, cubes of nice cheeses. A tart and some fruit is always nice for dessert.

[sunshine45]

how about making a signature cocktail or mocktail?....make them look festive!

caprese salad kababs....super easy and they look special

or how about cucumber and tomato kababs.....buy the smaller Mediterranean cucumbers and you dont need to peel them.

cucumber, tomato, and feta skewers

[1mamaj]

2 bought desserts that I use from time to time are Edwards Key Lime pie and Edwards Turtle Pie, both are really good.

[BooBoo2]

Yum, the cucumber and feta look really good! Maybe with a little vinaigrette drizzled on top. You could always put some of the chicken salad in Belgian endive leaves. They are like half hollow logs of crunchy lettuce that you can fill with the chicken salad for those who do not want or cannot eat bread. They are sturdy enough to pick up like a finger food too, easy to eat. Alternate the filled leaves with skewered veggies/or meats and cheeses on a platter. Keep the bread sandwiches on a separate plate for those who cannot eat gluten so that no bread crumbs get on any of the other foods. So many people are gluten intolerant these days.

Good luck and let us know what you end up making, you have some great ideas on here!

[sunshine45]

if you did want to make an easy dessert how about a raspberry sorbet?

you could just buy some simple shortbread or sugar cut out cookies to serve along with it.

http://lecremedelacrumb.com/2014/06/raspberry-sorbet.html

[qualitygal]

ohh cranberry sauce, color and an opposite (to me).

[GCR18]

The veggies on a stick with cheese sounds good.

Berries are in season. How about strawberry shortcake. You can make it untraditional by cutting up the cake into cubes and putting it together in a stemmed glass. Can even go crazy and add some blue berries.