Tommy Collins

2 parts Tommy Bahama White Sand® Rum
1 part fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon superfine sugar or simple syrup
Club soda

Shake rum, lemon juice, and sugar with ice then pour into a Collins glass. Fill remaining glass with club soda and garnish with an orange wheel and cherry.

Golden Sunset

2 parts Tommy Bahama Golden Sun® Rum
1 part premium orange liqueur

Serve in a snifter over crushed ice. Garnish with an orange twist.

Tommy’s Classic Daiquiri

2 parts Tommy Bahama White Sand Rum
1 part freshly squeezed lime juice
½ part simple syrup

Shake ingredients with crushed ice. Serve straight up in a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a lime wheel. The classic daiquiri is widely known as JFK’s favorite aperitif.

If you’re looking for more classic cocktail recipes visit the Tommy Bahama website. Don’t forget to remind your guests to drink responsibly.

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You can make kabobs with almost anything you want, from chicken, or beef to shrimp. Add your favorite veggies cut into chunks and your ready to go.

(c) L Gerlach

• Make a simple marinade with A1 Marinade, garlic powder, and Italian dressing.
• Chop and marinade all your meats and vegetables overnight in the refrigerator.
• Kabob them early in the day and store them in the fridge, then pop them on the grill when your guests arrive.

You can also make dessert kabobs with grilled fruit and chunks of pound cake. Marinade them with a little fresh fruit sauce, before or after you grill them. Yum!

You can make your kabobs to suit any taste buds, including all vegetable, seafood, or all meat kabobs. You can cater to your guests without much extra effort, I guess that’s why I’m such a big fan.

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(c) L Gerlach

• Will you be hosting your party at your home, or do you need to look at venues to host your party?
• Start putting together your guest list, you’ll need to send out invitations at least a month ahead of time, and order or pick out your invitations at least two months ahead of time and start addressing.
• What will you need to decorate? Now is a great time to plan for your fall party decorations. You can dry some flowers, grow a few pumpkins, make a scarecrow from fresh straw, pot up some fall flowers, or grow some gourds for a cornucopia.
• Start planning your menu, will you need your guests to bring anything, or will you provide all the food yourself?

Are you planning a fall party or event?

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Here’s the basic recipe (it’s not exact so feel free to adjust it to your taste):

(c) L Gerlach

Fruity Frozen Beach Cocktails

Ingredients:

• 1/2 to 1 cup orange juice
• 1/2 of a mango peeled and chopped
• 1 cup frozen or fresh strawberries
• 1/2 kiwi peeled and chopped
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh pineapple
• 1 banana peeled and chopped
• about 1 cup of ice (top off the blender after adding the other ingredients)
• 1 1/2 oz Coconut rum ( we used Cruzan)
• 1 1/2 oz Pineapple rum (Cruzan)
• Whipped topping

How to make them:

Put all the ingredients in a blender, and top with the ice. Blend all the ingredients together and pour into 3-4 glasses, then top with the whipped topping. Add a strawberry garnish and a straw and you’re set.

Feel free to experiment with different in season fruits. I think we even added watermelon to the recipe a couple of times, and it was a great addition.

You can leave out the rum and make a delicious fruity drink for the kids. Yum!

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Image (c) L Gerlach

I think I was addicted from the first bite. I’m a big fan of artichoke dips, I love it on corn chips, and the jalapenos give the Margaritaville version just a little bit of a kick. It’s not so hot that you can only eat a few bites, but you can definitely taste a little heat from the peppers. I think it’s a nice combination.

I think it would be a delicious change to traditional dips for a party. Something a little different to serve your guests.

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We head for the Outer Banks every summer to hang out on the beach. While we’re there we always visit the local seafood shops several time to pick up some shrimp for dinner. I think I’ll take this recipe along.

Surf ‘n Turf
with Garlic Cream Sauce

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Amount: 4 servings

Ingredients:
½ cup butter
2 tablespoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons minced shallots
⅛ teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
½ cup white wine
¼ cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon chopped chives
12 (8-12 count) raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
4 bamboo skewers, soaked in water 30 minutes
4 (4 ounce) Stockman & Dakota™ Beef Tenderloin Filets

Directions:
1. In medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add in garlic and Old Bay seasoning. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Sauté 1 minute.
2. Add in wine; bring to a simmer. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until reduced by half. Add in cream and chives; continue simmering until sauce has thickened slightly (about 1 minute). Set aside and keep warm.
3. Meanwhile, prepare grill to medium heat. Place 3 shrimp on each skewer. Sprinkle shrimp and beef with pepper, if desired. Place beef on grill; grill 11-15 minutes, turning once.
4. Place shrimp on grill a couple of minutes after the beef; grill, turning occasionally 8-10 minutes or until cooked through and opaque in color. About halfway through grilling, start brushing shrimp occasionally with a small amount of the garlic cream sauce.
5. Serve shrimp and beef with remaining garlic cream sauce.

Find more beef recipes at Stockman and Dakota.

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All the drinks have a tropical flavor, so you can give your summer parties that tropical flair. All summer long you can find a new featured signature drink of the month at the Tommy Bahama website.

Peachy Keen is a chilled, tropical, fruity blend that’s smooth, but lively and brings all the flavors to life, perfect for a beach party or backyard luau.

Tommy Bahama July Signature Drink: Peachy Keen

• 1 part Tommy Bahama Golden Sun^® Rum
• 1½ parts peach schnapps
• ½ part passion fruit juice
• 1 part mango juice
• 1 part fresh orange juice

Pour all ingredients into a mixing glass with ice.  Shake 20 times and strain into a chilled martini glass.  Garnish with an orchid.

Always make sure to remind your guests to drink responsibly!

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I love to use summer recipes that feature fresh herbs for summer entertaining. The flavors of the fresh herbs are fabulous.

Cucumber Salad with Fresh Herbs, Orange Segments and Citrus Dressing

by Chef Alexandros Papandreou

Preparation time: 15 minutes ∙ 4 servings

• 6 small cucumbers
• Coarse Salt

For the Dressing:

• ½ cup Gaea DOP sitia, Crete extra virgin olive oil
• Juice of 1 lemon
• Salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Freshly ground pink pepper
• 2 large oranges
• 1 tbsp. fresh rosemary
• 1 tbsp. fresh oregano
• 1 tbsp. fresh thyme
• 1 tbsp. fresh mint

How To Make It:

1. Wash cucumbers and oranges well.
2. Peel oranges, remove white membrane and cut flesh in thin slices.
3. Thinly slice cucumbers with a mandolin.
4. Combine salt and two kinds of pepper in glass or stainless steel bowl and add lemon juice.
5. Slowly add olive oil while stirring constantly with wire whisk.
6. Combine dressing with orange slices and fresh herbs.

To serve:

Arrange cucumbers in dishes and pour over prepared dressing. Sprinkle with a little coarse salt.

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Here’s a quick and easy backyard barbecue recipe from the United States Potato Board, that’s also a light and healthy alternative to fried potatoes and heavy high fat dips.

The dipping sauces all use fat-free Greek yogurt as a base and can be made up to 24 hours ahead and stored tightly covered in the refrigerator. I love summer party recipes that can be prepared ahead and pulled out at the last minute.

The best part is the whole dish is very low cost, but it looks fabulous on the table.

GRILLED POTATO DIPPERS WITH A TRIO OF SAUCES

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cook time: about 30 minutes

Cost per serving: $1.71, including sauces

2 pounds russet potatoes, scrubbed and cut into wedges

1 tablespoon olive oil

Sea salt to taste

Sauces (see below)

Place potato wedges in a large bowl with olive oil; toss well to coat. Grill over medium-high heat for 10 minutes, turning once or twice, until lightly charred and cooked through. Season with salt and serve immediately with dippers.

Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Nutritional analysis per serving (potatoes only):

Calories: 140, Fat: 2g, Saturated Fat: 0g, Trans Fat: 0g, Cholesterol: 0mg, Sodium: 95mg, Potassium: 713mg, Carbohydrates: 28g, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 1g, Protein: 3g, Vitamin A:  0%, Vitamin C: 30%, Calcium: 2%, Iron: 8%

Red Pepper Basil Dipping Sauce

1/2 cup fat-free Greek yogurt

1/2 cup roasted red peppers, drained and patted dry

2 cloves garlic

1/4 cup each: sliced green onions and basil leaves

Sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Puree yogurt, peppers and garlic in a blender or small food processor. Add onions and basil and pulse on and off until finely chopped. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Nutritional analysis per serving:

Calories: 15, Fat: 0g, Saturated Fat: 0g, Trans Fat: 0g, Cholesterol: 0mg, Sodium: 105mg, Potassium: 20mg, Carbohydrates: 2g, Fiber: 0g, Sugar: 1g, Protein: 2g, Vitamin A: 15 %, Vitamin C: 15%, Calcium: 2%, Iron: 0%

Caramelized Onion and Chive Dipping Sauce

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 medium onion, quartered and thinly sliced

1 cup fat-free Greek yogurt

1/4 cup sliced chives or green onion tops

2 tablespoons fresh rosemary leaves

Sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Heat oil in a medium skillet. Add onion and cook over low heat for 20 minutes stirring frequently; let cool. Puree onion and yogurt in a blender or small food processor until smooth. Add chives and rosemary and pulse on and off until finely chopped. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Nutritional analysis per serving:

Calories: 40, Fat: 2g, Saturated Fat: 0g, Trans Fat: 0g, Cholesterol: 0mg, Sodium: 55mg, Potassium: 31mg, Carbohydrates: 3g, Fiber: 0g, Sugar: 2g, Protein: 3g, Vitamin A: 2%, Vitamin C: 4%, Calcium: 8%, Iron: 0%

Avocado Cilantro Dipping Sauce

3/4 cup fat-free Greek yogurt

1 ripe avocado, peeled and pitted

2 cloves garlic

1/4 cup lightly packed fresh cilantro leaves

1/2 tablespoon lime juice

Sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Puree yogurt, avocado and garlic in a blender or small food processor until smooth. Add cilantro and lime juice and pulse on and off until finely chopped. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Nutritional analysis per serving:

Calories: 70, Fat: 4g, Saturated Fat: 0.5g, Trans Fat: 0g, Cholesterol: 0mg, Sodium: 60mg, Potassium: 162mg, Carbohydrates: 4g, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 1g, Protein: 4g, Vitamin A: 6%, Vitamin C: 8%, Calcium: 4%, Iron: 2%

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• Set up an ice cream sundae bar and let everyone make their own ice cream sundae.
• Get some yummy ice cream party favors.
• Make some homemade ice cream, this Tropical Coconut Ice Cream sounds wonderful for a summer party.
• Make a simple berry sauce from some of those fresh in season berries you have on hand.

Bobby Flay helps you make some classic vanilla milk shakes. Yum!

Break out the ice cream and celebrate!

Image via stock.xpert.com

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