FireCooker Forums

Does anyone have any special plans for this summer, such as vacationing, pool parties, or multiple cook outs in your backyard?  I have not decided what I am going to do yet.

We already completed some of our plans involving plant beds and lighting. We still plan on getting more furishings for the backyard entertainment area.

We swing into “improvisation mode” at the end of June, then have our annual vacation in July.

chris1203 - 31 May 2009 10:15 AM

Does anyone have any special plans for this summer, such as vacationing, pool parties, or multiple cook outs in your backyard?  I have not decided what I am going to do yet.

Mini vacation coming up for us at the end of this month… the “real” vacation won’t be until
next spring.  Other than that, just some projects to do around the house, inside and out.

I sure hope there will be abundant cookouts here and other places. 

It’s been a while since we used the BBQs in our condo complex. There’s a nice area to eat down there if you feel like that, plus there’s a fountain in the courtyard.

We usually cook down there and come back upstairs to eat. Sometimes we do breakfast sausage in the morning.

Taggart - 09 June 2009 08:09 AM

We usually cook down there and come back upstairs to eat. Sometimes we do breakfast sausage in the morning.

That sounds as if it would be fun (and smell great in the morning!)  Have you ever tried
making a full breakfast along with that sausage?

Katharina - 09 June 2009 05:22 PM

Taggart - 09 June 2009 08:09 AM

We usually cook down there and come back upstairs to eat. Sometimes we do breakfast sausage in the morning.

That sounds as if it would be fun (and smell great in the morning!)  Have you ever tried
making a full breakfast along with that sausage?

We’ve cooked the sausage on the BBQ, but I don’t think we’ve done the eggs there. I believe there’s a rule against using metal dishes on the BBQ.

Sometimes in the elevators, someone’s returning from the BBQ with their meal and it smells so good, you wonder if anyone’s ever been mugged for their grilled meat.

Taggart - 25 June 2009 09:04 AM

Sometimes in the elevators, someone’s returning from the BBQ with their meal and it smells so good, you wonder if anyone’s ever been mugged for their grilled meat.

  Well I don’t know but the smell of meat fresh off the grill is so incredible that I
really wouldn’t be surprised if it’s happened!

Sometimes down by the barbecues there can be “meat envy” I’d say. I’m talking about if someone’s cooking hot dogs and someone else right beside them is cooking steaks or lobster tails.

Sometimes we end up sharing half the grill if there’s a lineup waiting.

Taggart - 28 June 2009 10:39 AM

Sometimes down by the barbecues there can be “meat envy” I’d say. I’m talking about if someone’s cooking hot dogs and someone else right beside them is cooking steaks or lobster tails.

Sometimes we end up sharing half the grill if there’s a lineup waiting.

I can see why/how that could happen, yes!    I’m not sure I’d do very well with a
“community grill”... I prefer my own grill without someone’s lobster juices running
into my chicken dog. 

Spent the weekend getting my garden sorted out. Laid new turf, got a new patio set with a parasol and comfy chairs… bought a new bbq grill thingy… it’s my wedding anniversary next week, so we are planning a get together with the family and some friends.

stav - 28 June 2009 02:40 PM

Spent the weekend getting my garden sorted out. Laid new turf, got a new patio set with a parasol and comfy chairs… bought a new bbq grill thingy… it’s my wedding anniversary next week, so we are planning a get together with the family and some friends.

How very wonderful… for all of the above!  Congratulations to you and your husband and Happy
Anniversary!  What will you be serving at your get together? 

Congratulations, stav. I don’t know where you live, but I hear that it’s going to be pretty hot in my area for the next week or so.

Chances are the parasol will come in very handy.

Do you have the menu planned for the celebration?

I live in tropical London Taggart… our hottestday of the year today, and likely to get hotter still….

menu…hmm…

well.. for the charcoal,  the usual half a lamb on the spit.. some chicken and loukanika (greek spiced sausage marinaded in wine)and giant mushrooms drizzled with olive oil and lemon and garlic..

then also..

homemade houmous and taramosalata
black olives (marinaded for a month in olive oil and vinegar)
Thick greek yoghurt
greek salad (lettuce celery spring onion tomatoes cucumber large amounts of fresh coriander in olive oil, mustard and vinegar dressing)
greek potato salad (potato, spring onion, coriander, olive oil, lemon)
roast potatoes (garlic cinnamon and bayleaf)
honey roast parsnips
roast sweet potatoes
pastichio (greek macaroni dish, layered thick macaroni, meat in bolognese type sauce, and rich creamy topping of eggs milk and cheese baked in oven moussaka style)
moussaka
greek meatballs
sheftalia
afelia (wine and coriander marinaded pork)
dolmades (stuffed vine leaves from my own garden)
my special lime and gingernut cheesecake
and a dessert called ‘charlotta’ which is very rich and a cross between a tiramisu and a trifle…
then through the night all the usual various snacky type stuff…

stav - 29 June 2009 03:14 PM

well.. for the charcoal,  the usual half a lamb on the spit.. some chicken and loukanika (greek spiced sausage marinaded in wine)and giant mushrooms drizzled with olive oil and lemon and garlic..

Aw man!  I wanna come… may I invite myself?  I don’t suppose you could move the
party to NYC?  Nah, I didn’t think so… this sounds absolutely incredible.

Roasted potatoes with cinnamon… that sounds delicious and I’ve never met a
meatball I didn’t like…. and moussaka.  You did this on purpose just to make me
starved and blow my diet, didn’tya?! 

And cheesecake!  My goodness.