The best backyard parties feel like a one-day vacation. Here are four secrets to throwing the kind of outdoor shindig that will have the neighbors knocking down the door.
Tiki extravaganza: Tiki style lends itself to silly outdoor fun, and party stores these days are brimming with South Pacific-themed decorations. In additon to sending out tiki-themed invitations, Evite.com suggests stringing leis, beaded curtains and paper party lanterns everywhere. Also, turn down the lights and use flickering tea lights and candles in such scents as lemongrass or plumeria. Wrap tables in grass skirts, put cocktail umbrellas in everyone’s drink, and use tiki mugs instead of glasses. For a final Shangri-La touch, devise a menu of Asian-flavored treats like grilled chicken satay, pot stickers and pineapple upside-down cake. The especially adventurous may choose a luau-style pig roast – an event guests never will forget. Read up on pit roasting at foodtv.ca.
Punch it up: Punch bowls always go over well because they are versatile and great to look at. The growing selection of flavored vodkas and rums at the liquor store, and exotic juice mixes at the grocery store, also mean options abound for concocting your own backyard blend. Experts suggest sticking with inexpensive ingredients when making punch, always adding fruit or mint, and keeping a hearty supply of cups and ice nearby.
Spiked Pink Lemonade
This simple recipe comes from the June/July 2007 issue of Everyday With Rachael Ray.
Ingredients
1 bottle vodka or gin
5 cups lemonade
2 cups cranberry juice
3 cups ginger ale
Directions
Combine, enjoy!
Cooking is optional: There is surely a place for blue-cheese-stuffed burgers and beer-soaked brats at any number of al fresco feasts. But it’s also simple to eat and socialize outside without laying a hand on a spatula or mixing bowl, and sometimes the spontaneity of not planning a menu adds to the fun. Store extra portions of these pantry staples for a backyard picnic anytime: wine, beer, canned juices and soda, sandwich fixings, cheese, crackers, black olives, baby corn and other preserved vegetables. Easy people-pleasers include smoked salmon and jarred bruschetta topping. Also, consider roasting or grilling batches of red peppers, then storing individual servings in the freezer for picnic time. Or, when other commitments demand cooking or baking, pack extra portions away for an outdoor treat later in the week.
That’s entertainment: Movie night is a delight regardless of how modest or sophisticated the crowd. For a highbrow take on the trend, pair a portable outdoor screen with an LCD projector. Or give the party an old-fashioned drive-in feel by renting a projector, tacking a white sheet up on the fence, and laying blankets and sleeping bags on the lawn.
