This post is promoted by Hebrew National®.
Summer is finally here!
Now we may have started celebrating summer’s arrival back on June 1st but this week is the first “official” week of summer and we’re ready to party, cookout and enjoy the patio! Not only is it the first week of summer but it’s also my birthday week! Along with summer making its appearance, I turned 30 on Tuesday and I can’t think of a better reason to celebrate! How does one celebrate the start of summer (and a huge milestone birthday)?
With a Summer Kick Off Party, of course!
Since we’ve officially entered into the season of cookouts and summer evening parties, I’ve been working on a few tips and ideas that will make your next summer party a blast! Blame it on my age, but my idea of the perfect summer party is one that is stress free, low maintenance and one that gives me plenty of time to sit down, relax and catch up with family and friends. Although I love simple cookouts, I do love to throw in a few little “fancy details.”
Believe me, it’s all in the details. It doesn’t matter how big or how small your party is, little details like a themed menu or table top decorations will pull the entire party together and make it even more fun!
#1. Keep Lots of Cold Drinks on Hand.
The summer heat can be brutal. While I always try to have our cookouts in the evenings, the temperatures and humidity can still be sky high well into the night. Keep a lot of cold drinks and ice on hand to keep yourself and your guests happy and refreshed. I normally keep an assortment of drinks available to satisfy everyone’s taste buds.
Fill a large bucket with ice and nestle mason jars of ice cold drinks into the ice for quick “grab and go” thirst quenchers but also keep pitchers of sweet tea and homemade lemonade on the table for quick refills.
One of my favorite ways to add a little something extra to the drinks is to make fruit ice cubes that I can put into the jars of clear soda or ice cold water!
A few days before the party, fill an ice cube tray with blueberries and sliced strawberries. Cover the berries with water and freeze until solid.
When it’s time to party, pop the fruit ice cubes into mason jars, fill jars with water or clear soda, screw on the lids and pop them into the fridge or a bucket of ice! You’ll have jars of flavored drinks for the party with minimal work.
#2. Keep the decorations simple.
My main focus at any cookout or party is the food table. Once I’ve decorated that area of the party, I can sit back and relax. Normally the food area is going to be the main focus of the party and that’s where I like to add in my color themes and decoration details.
Decorations don’t have to be elaborate either. Match a few plate and tablecloth colors, use pretty serving dishes and add a bright flower arrangement for a beautiful but easy tablescape.
For a simple flower arrangement, sit a smaller glass vase down inside of a larger/taller cylinder vase. Slice fresh lemons and slide the thin lemon slices between the two vases, using a skewer or chopstick to push them all the way to the bottom. Stack the lemon slices in between the two vases, around the entire vase until they reach the top of the vase. Fill the middle vase with water and add your favorite flowers.
You can also add a bit of detail by printing your party menu onto white paper, cutting it out and gluing it onto a sheet of scrapbook paper that matches your theme! I personally love seeing food menus at parties! As a host, I use it as a checklist to make sure I’ve put everything out and as a guest I use it to make sure I don’t miss out on anything. 😉
#3. Set up a hot dog bar.
Hebrew National® All-Beef Franks are easy to grill, they have endless topping options and they’re portable (which is great in my opinion!). When I serve Hebrew National® All-Beef Franks at our parties, I sit out the buns, Hebrew National® All-Beef Franks and toppings and let our party guests create their own hot dog masterpieces.
We normally set up the grill close to the food table so that we can just move the Hebrew National® All-Beef Frank straight from the grill to the serving trays. That way everyone has a fresh from the grill hot dog and the smells from the grill fill the party area.
I don’t know about you, but I love the smell of food cooking on the grill!
Since everyone likes different condiments on their hot dogs you can be the judge of what items you set out for people to use. For our Summer Kick Off Party we went with the traditional toppings of ketchup, mustard and relish! I’m more of a “just ketchup please” girl when it comes to my hot dogs but my mom on the other hand loves almost everything on hers!
Also, I just wanted to put this in here, I used to not be a hot dog fan. I was ridiculously picky and when Big Bear and I got married, I would literally stand in the grocery store and read the labels of each and every hot dog package the store offered. I didn’t want a hot dog with “just anything thrown in.” That’s when I fell in love with the Hebrew National® All-Beef Franks.
I want to tell you this because I want you to know why I eat them and why I’m so picky about which hot dogs I’ll eat. I just won’t eat “any ol’ hot dog” at a cook out. Hebrew National® All-Beef Franks have no artificial coloring and no fillers. They use premium cuts of beef and that’s what I want in my hot dogs!
#4. Serve Cold Foods alongside Grilled items
It’s going to be hot. You’re celebrating summer after all! Help everyone keep cool by serving cool or cold foods to go along with their grilled meals! Serve cold pasta salad as the perfect cookout side, serve it in a large bowl for guests to portion out while going through the food line! Make sure items like pasta salad (or potato salad) is one of the last items to be set out. Keep it in the fridge for as long as you can. Don’t leave anything mayo or yogurt based out in the heat for too long. If you’re planning on leaving it out, make sure to sit it down in a bowl of ice and keep it covered to make sure it stays cold!
Serve cold, diced fruit for a quick and refreshing dessert! Cut up an ice cold watermelon or set out a huge bowl of mixed fruit and let guest help themselves. For our Summer Kick Off Party, I set out a huge bowl of grapes, blueberries and strawberries! I kept it in the fridge until right before the party and set it out with a large serving spoon! Mixed fruit is always one of the first things to be finished off!
Popsicle are another great “cool down” option! I love making our own popsicles out of flavored drinks! Use different colored drinks and freeze them in layers for perfect, summer colored, icy treats! Make them ahead and pop them into the freezer! I recommend leaving them in the freezer and letting guest know that they’re available because sitting them out during a summer afternoon would just lead to a sticky mess!
#5. Keep everyone entertained by allowing them to entertain themselves.
One of the main “stress inducing” activities that used to drive me crazy was making sure that everyone was having a good time. I felt like I couldn’t enjoy my parties or cookouts because I was constantly checking on everyone and making sure that everyone was ok and that they were having fun! Now, I’m not saying that you shouldn’t check on guest, but don’t let it consume your evening.
If space and time allows, set up a “corn-hole tournament” section of the yard or an area to play horseshoes for the adults. Have ample seating areas for the guest that may just want to sit down and chat and also have an area where kids can be kids! A slip-n-slide or other water activities can keep kids entertained and cool while adults mingle (while keeping an eye on the little ones!)
I normally have music playing in the background which takes up any “dead air space” and normally try to play a mixture of music that everyone will enjoy!
So, are you ready for your Summer Kick Off Party? Have any tips that I’ve missed? I’d love to hear about them!! Happy summer, y’all!!
What makes a Hebrew National kosher hot dog premium? It’s all about what makes the cut (And what doesn’t). We’re choosy about what goes into our franks – we use only premium cuts of 100% kosher beef from the front half of the cow and then choose the best from that. No artificial flavors, colors, fillers or by-products. When your hot dog is Kosher, that’s a hot dog you can trust! For more
Summer fun with Hebrew National, visit facebook.com/hebrewnational.
You really know how to throw a party, Angie! Love your food table – so pretty. I’m copying your fruitty ice cubes for my next get-together. And we also like Hebrew National hot dogs, they’re just the best!
Such great tips, and I love the lemons in the vase!
Ahhh nothing says summer like a good hot dog BBQ party!! Yes please!
Happy Birthday! I love the festive decorations ad food. I’m totally crushing on the Watermelon Mason Jars! So cute!
Great tips – I love your table set up. I can’t believe it is already July 4th, need to get on the summer party planning!
Great tips! What kind if paint have you used for the watermelon mason jars? They are so cute. Thank you!
Just acrylic paint, like the little bottles that are about $1 at the craft store.