Summertime...

E and I hosted some new friends for a dinner party tonight.

It's always fun and a little intimidating to host new people.  I got more dressed up than normal (which meant I was dressed down for most women in my situation, but still).  I spent time thinking about and preparing the meal.

In fact, I was quite proud of the menu, even if I did burn the bagel chips to the point of "throw-'em-in-the-compost" 

You might think that slicing and basting with olive and roasting bagel chips would be easy...

In my excitement to prep for dinner I forgot to set a timer.  By the time I smelled them, the bagel chips tasted like charcoal...

Thank goodness the rest of the meal was wonderful!

This! This is Summer!

Gazpacho (75% from the garden). Grilled okra (huge hit, first time we'd made it), shishitos (grilled, from the garden, huge hit) & eggplant (from the farmer's market, need to work on the marinade recipe). Sliced Cherry garden tomatoes (always a hit, plus we fed Guito as entertainment with one). Smoked salmon, caviar & capers (we're so Californian, we warned them at arrival and offered to grill sausage if they needed more animal protein, so I guess we aren't *that* stereotypically Californian). Goat gouda (double gold Californian gouda competition winner from our local farmer's market, always a huge hit), manchego (who doesn't like Manchego), & d'Affinois (if you like creamy cow cheese, this will keep you happy). Chateauneuf Du Pape (nice guest move!  We were very pleased and honored with what they brought.). Good olive oil, balsamic & fancy salt (all 3 of these are required at every meal in our house). Sliced baguettes (thank goodness I bought that baguette even though I didn't *need* it since I thought we'd still have the bagel chips...)