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As the days slowly start to grow shorter, we must, though it may be sad, say good-bye to summer. But, before we turn our heads towards the warm colors of autumn, there is time for one last gathering of friends.
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Send out initiations to several of your friends. Ask them to bring one-quarter pound of seafood to the party. Be sure that they pack their seafood on ice in route.
You make the stock (see recipe below), the salad, the rolls (a great do-a-head recipe below) and the desert. Provide the ambiance and your have the makings of a great late summer party.
For this party, light your patio with lots of candles (be sure these are out of the way of your guests). Another idea is to light the patio with small strings of Christmas lights. This will illuminate the outdoor space. White lights work well, but yellow lights are especially nice for a late summer party. For indoors, follow our instructions from our last newsletter for using candles to illuminate your fireplace.
This is a party for outdoors so invite the number of guests that you can accommodate on your patio or backyard space. If you have room in your yard, set up extra card tables covered with white table cloths and use folding chars covered in fabric.
Lots and lots of flowers in jars and vases as well as candles everywhere make the space perfect. If you can, use the flowers from your garden, if not,purchase the flowers from your florist the day of your party (or better yet, find a florist who delivers).
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Dress your tables with linen and lace. Set out china and crystal. Who says that just because a part is in the yard that you have to use paper and plastic?
Kandi has done this pot-luck party may times. Most of the time, the stew is a tasty mixture of clams, shrimp, clams, oysters, halibut, sole, and scallops. Resist the urge to tell eash person what they should bring. While this may make a great stew, it takes away the excitement. Once the stew at Kandi's was nothing more than halibut and sole - it was still delicious. That is the fun of a pot luck. Just let it happen. Our base is so delicious - you can't go wrong!
Decorating Projects
Extra Chairs: Take regular metal folding chars and use them for extra seating during a party. The wonderful part about these is that they can be covered any way that matches the mood of your party and both the chair and cover can be folded away for the next time. We think navy and white stripe is especailly nice.
Hanging Votive Candles: Take ordinary glass jars which have a rim on the top, you know where the lid screws on. Fill the bottom with wet sand. Tie wire securely around the mouth of the jar making a handle for handing. Place a votive candle in the jar and push it into the sand. Hang these from tree branches out of the way (you don't want guests to bump their heads on the jars). Small mayonaise jars, large babyfood jars, mustard jars, etc. are great to use. The candles should be hung into place prior to lighting. Also, the wire can get very hot, so be careful if you need to move it. The wire shandle should be long enough that the flame doesn't ignight anything above it. And, never leave these unattended.
Flower Vaces: Another great way to recycle old glass jars is to use them as a simple vace. An old mayonsaise jar or pickle jar makes a great cvasual vace for daiseys or other flowers. Tie ribbon around the mouth of the jar in colors to match or contrast your decor.
Invitations
Now days it is easy to create your own special invitations using clip art and a color printer using letter or card stock. A nice touch is to address them by hand using scented ink.
Written invitations are always a nice touch. It gives your guests something to hang on their bulliten board as a reminder. Be sure to give the arival time and a suggested way to dress (someone always asks).
For these invitations, you will need to have each guest print one quarter of a pound of firm fish, lobster, crab, scallops, or clams (keep these in their shells). They should bring the fish wrapped in ice or in a cooler.
Recipes
Bouillabaisse
| 5 Cups Fish or Chicken Stock |
1 Tbsp. Dried Parsley |
| 2 16-ounce Cans Diced Tomatoes |
2 Bay Leaves |
| 1 Cup Dry White Wine |
2 tsp. Dried Thyme |
| 2 Large Onions, Chopped |
2 tsp. Dried Basil |
| 2 Cloves Garlic, Chopped |
1/4 tsp. Tabasco (or to taste) |
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Combine all ingredients in a large stockpot which will hold the additional seafood.
Simmer the stock slowly for about 30 minutes prior to the arrival of your guests. As each guest arrives, add their contribution to the pot. Cook the stew for at least 15 minutes after the last addition.
Serve the stew in soup bowls and pass around plenty of crusty bread.
12 Generous servings - may be doubled |
Do-Ahead-Rolls - These are great for parties.
| 4 - 4 1/2 Cups Unbleached Flour |
1/3 Cup Butter |
| 1 Package Active Dry Yeast |
1 tsp. Salt |
| 3/4 Cup Milk |
2 Eggs |
| 1/3 Cup Sugar |
1/4 Cup Warm Water |
| In a sauce pan, head the milk and butter. Bring it to just under simmer. Cool to about 90 degrees.
In a large mixing bowl, place the yeast and the water. The water should be very warm to the touch on your wrist (about 95 degrees). Stir the mixture and let it stand for about 3 minutes. Add one tsp. of the sugar and let it stand again until it becomes bubbly.
Add about 1/4 cup of flour and mix well. Beat the eggs into the milk mixture. Sprinkle the salt and sugar into the mixture and beat well. Alternate adding the milk and the flour ending with the flour. The dough will begin to get very stiff. At this point, turn it out of the bowl and start kneading in the remaining flour. Do not add too much flour. The dough should be firm and not stick to your hands, but should be pliable. Kneed the dough for at least 20 minutes. Shape it into a ball and place it in a greased bowl which is at least twice the size of the ball. Place a tea towel over the bowel and place it into an unlit oven (these keeps it away from drafts).
After about 45 minutes to an hour the dough will double in size. Punch the dough down and remove it from the bowl and place it on a well floured surface. Let it rest for about 10 minutes.
Shape the dough into rolls by pulling off a piece which is a ball about 1 to 1 1/2 inches round. Shape this into a dinner roll shape. Place the rolls on baking sheets. Cover these with a towel and let them rise until they are double in size.
Cook the rolls for 8-10 minutes in a 325 degree oven. Do not brown. Remove the rolls from the baking sheet and let them cool on a wire rack. Freeze the rolls in freezer bags.
To serve, thaw the rolls in the bags for about 15 minutes. Bake on an ungreased baking sheet at 400 degrees for 10 minutes or until golden brown.
Makes 2 to 2 1/2 dozen rolls. |
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