{"id":11759,"date":"2023-05-17T19:03:40","date_gmt":"2023-05-17T23:03:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp2.dinnertime.com\/content\/?p=11759"},"modified":"2023-05-17T19:03:40","modified_gmt":"2023-05-17T23:03:40","slug":"summer-potluck-picks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp2.dinnertime.com\/content\/2023\/05\/17\/summer-potluck-picks\/","title":{"rendered":"Summer Potluck Picks"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Yes, yes, yes! Next week is Memorial Day<\/a> Weekend\u2026 for me, the official start of the summer entertaining season. The air is turning warm and sweet with the smell of flowers and freshly mowed grass. The sun is shining and sets later and later. Even the moon is brighter. People just seem to smile more in the summer (or maybe I do!) Fire up the grill, load up a cooler and invite some friends over for dinner. Who\u2019s ready for summer parties?<\/p>\n

We do a lot of \u201cpotluck\u201d style entertaining in the summer where we provide the drinks, main dish and ask others to bring an appetizer, dessert or a side dish. It\u2019s an economical way to entertain and takes the burden off the host to prepare all the food.<\/p>\n

Almost always guests offer to bring a dessert or an appetizer\u2026. not the sides. I’m not sure why, but I love having several easy-to-make special side dishes, perfect for summer gatherings, in my repertoire. I know I would be thrilled if someone offered to bring a seasonal salad or homemade potato salad to my party. I want my friends to know they can count on me to provide a healthy and tasty dish that the rest of their guests will love.<\/p>\n

5 Tips When Providing a PotLuck Dish<\/h3>\n
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  1. Remember to float your idea of what you want to bring by the host. Ask the host if there is a dish they would specifically like you to make or would they like your suggestion? I used to like to control what food is being served, but I\u2019ve become more relaxed over the years. If I end up with two Caesar salads\u2026 so be it. However, it\u2019s nicer to have variety.<\/li>\n
  2. Make sure your dish makes sense for the type of party. For example, if the host is throwing a potluck picnic in the neighborhood park, hot baked beans might not be the best idea, but an easily transportable pasta salad would.<\/li>\n
  3. How many guests are expected? Usually, for a potluck, I don\u2019t expect every dish to feed every person, but I would want to know if 10 people are coming or 50. It\u2019s so easy to increase the number of servings on my DinnerTime recipe so I make sure I have the right quantities of all the ingredients. Magically!… my DinnerTime Grocery List<\/a> will include the right amount of each ingredient needed for my recipe.<\/li>\n
  4. Make it fresh. Store-bought potato salad is \u2026 well it\u2019s just not the same as homemade. You can control the amount of mayonnaise and know it doesn\u2019t need an expiration date printed on it. Making a side dish yourself may take a little longer but you can control the flavors. Sure, that fancy store you love makes a really good bean salad, but I bet you can do the same for a lot less money.<\/li>\n
  5. Provide your own attractive serving dish and serving spoons\/tongs. And remember to clean them up and take them home at the end of the party. As a host, I\u2019m always prepared with a few extra serving spoons and platters, just in case. Additionally, if your salad needs tossing with dressing before it gets served, be the one who does the tossing. It\u2019s part of bringing the dish and your host is likely busy with other tasks.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    My Top Favorite Potluck Party Recipes:<\/h2>\n

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    Herbed Red Potato Salad:<\/span> <\/strong><\/a>I love a good potato salad. And there are sooo many delicious ways to make it. (Check out your DinnerTime Recipe Box for loads of recipes) A lot of folks don\u2019t care for mayonnaise so I started making this recipe, and have found that everyone loves it. It\u2019s easy to make, easy to scale the number of servings and is tasty the next day if you have any leftovers. (You won\u2019t!)<\/p>\n

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    Caribbean Summer Salad:<\/strong><\/span><\/a> Oh my! Is this delicious on a hot summer day! I make this in peak summer months sourcing the sweetest nectarines and fresh from-the-cob corn. This recipe makes a bright, pretty and surprisingly fresh tasting dish. It\u2019s different than many of the classic summer picnic fare which makes it more special. Did I mention it\u2019s easy to make?<\/p>\n

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    Marinated Mozzarella and Tomatoes:<\/strong><\/span><\/a> Ever noticed that folks think you are a culinary genius when you’ve served this dish? Maybe because they can already taste the simple but wonderfully fresh ingredients. Just picked from the garden (or your area roadside stand) basil and tomatoes interspersed with slices of fresh mozzarella, is my very favorite summer dish. If you have access to a variety of tomatoes like yellow and striped hybrid, then use them together on the platter for a collective \u201cwow\u201d. Simple and yes, genius.<\/p>\n

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    Homemade Boston Baked Beans:<\/strong><\/span><\/a> Baked beans are a staple at our summer parties. I\u2019m always surprised that the dish is scraped clean, even when I make more than I think is needed. They are just that good and appreciated. Baked beans pair well with burgers, chicken, beef\u2026whatever is being served, you can\u2019t go wrong. Remember to think about logistics\u2026do you need to keep them hot or can you bring your dish in a warming carrier?<\/p>\n

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    Red, White and Blue Summer Salad:<\/strong><\/span> Once again, this is a salad that folks will think you are gifted at salad making. It\u2019s beautiful and made with fresh, delicious and colorful ingredients, it’s perfect. It\u2019s the taste of summer in a salad. Even the kids love it. Plus, it\u2019s so healthy!<\/p>\n

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    Find your favorite go-to recipes. Test them on your family. When you get the invite to a potluck party you’ll be able to suggest to the host a couple of wonderful recipes that you can contribute.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Yes, yes, yes! Next week is Memorial Day Weekend\u2026 for me, the official start of the summer entertaining season. The air is turning warm and sweet with the smell of flowers and freshly mowed grass. The sun is shining and… Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":11773,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[5,4],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp2.dinnertime.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11759"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp2.dinnertime.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp2.dinnertime.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp2.dinnertime.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp2.dinnertime.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11759"}],"version-history":[{"count":26,"href":"https:\/\/wp2.dinnertime.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11759\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11793,"href":"https:\/\/wp2.dinnertime.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11759\/revisions\/11793"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp2.dinnertime.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11773"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp2.dinnertime.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11759"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp2.dinnertime.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11759"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp2.dinnertime.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11759"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}