If you are like me, you've probably had an entire weekend of jam packed with BBQs. I attended a German themed BBQ on Friday and yesterday hosted my own. The first to be made was the Summery Sangria. For recipe see How To Summon Sun, Sea & Spain With Spanish Sangria. You may want to add peaches and tonnes more fruit such as grapes and strawberries, for a refreshing summery drink.
The next to prepare were the garlic & basil chicken thighs. The original recipe called for butter, so I threw in a tablespoon of butter and substituted the rest with a drizzle of olive oil. Throw in crushed garlic and fresh basil leaves and leave to marinate for a few hours in the fridge. Serve with sweetcorn. A very tasty treat.
For the starter, you may also wish to prepare guacamole for some heart loving fats (mono unsaturated fatty acids; the MUFAs).
Recipe
2 avocados, flesh only
3 large cherry tomatoes
1/2 medium red onion, chopped
1 - 2 tablespoons coriander
Juice of 1/2 lime
Salt & freshly cracked black pepper
Directions
Mash avocado with the back of a spoon, mix in tomatoes, red onion and coriander. Then add juice of 1/2 lime, salt and freshly cracked black pepper. Serve with toasted pita bread, cut into strips.
It would be crazy not to prepare my favourite food - salmon so I did! I opted for Stuffed Salmon which really is amazing with very ripe tomatoes, carrots, red onions, a generous squeeze of lime juice and a sprinkling of herbes de provence from South of France. You can wrap this in foil then place on the BBQ when the coals are a soft glow. You'll enjoy being seated next to the warm glow as the last rays of sun fade away.
There were plenty of spicy sausages and other meats that the guests brought but sadly no photographs for display. Merguez has always been a favourite. It's peppery and spicy flavours are best washed down with a bit of the sweet sangria. For a fabulous photo of this see Day Two: What To Expect When Dining With The French In The South Of France.
There was a mozarella, tomato, cucumber and avocado based salad as well as a rice and sweetcorn based salad. The latter was an offering by a lovely friend Sinead. Alternatively why not try Under The Sun: Grown Up Mediterranean Salad.
Look at these amazing breads freshly baked by a very talented Vaani! Don't they look professionally baked? I will be booking in for baking lessons with her very soon. The lattice breads were infused with olives. Delicious.
Finally but not least was dessert. When you are feeling too stuffed for the third course, fresh fruit can be the perfect solution. You could either prepare a fruit salad (for recipe ideas see Lazy Fruit Salad) or go with fresh fruit on its own such as delicious grapes and mouth watering slices of watermelon.
I do love BBQs and there are plenty of ways of incorporating nourishing foods, fruit and vegetables at these parties. Enjoy your Sunday lovely readers!
Do share the love with a TWEET or LIKE and please do comment below your recipe ideas for a BBQ Smoke off. I do love hearing from you!
