I'd been planning our L:abor Day dinner barbecue for a few weeks.
Planned the menu out for a traditional American barbecue, more or
less:
sausage stuffed mushrooms
Appenzeller cheese crisps (very labor intensive and not worth it,
IMHO)
barbecue ribs
hashbrown casserole (thanks, Barb)
deviled eggs
Summer Tomatoes
Boston baked beans
garlic bread
watermelon, cantaloupe and pineapple with lime-mint syrup
(recipes upon request)
What I didn't count on when I was planning the dinner party was a heat
wave. OMG, this has been just miserable. 97°F and no air conditioning
(okay, you guys in the Inland Empire who get into the triple digiits,
just can it - I didn't sign on for this heat). We rarely need it.
We're a couple of miles from the ocean and usually get some nice ocean
breezes to offset the heat. Not this week.
I did as much as I could yesterday, so I wouldn't be a sweating mess
when our guests were here. Made the appetizers, deviled eggs, the
summer tomatoes dressing, prepped the ribs, made the barbecue sauce
and the lime-mint syrup for the dessert.
This morning, greeted the hotter than hell day with a less than happy
disposition. I was just dripping by the time I finished setting the
table, making the garlic bread, blah blah blah. What was I thinking??
I hadn't planned this menu with a heat wave in mind, but I was already
grocery commited (having bought the groceries before the heat wave
hit) and God forbid I should look at the extended forecast.
The DH says I was the only one who was unhappy with the afternoon. I
was hot and sweaty and what made me think running 2 ovens at 350°F in
September was a good idea?? Our guests were gracious about the hot
house dinner, but I felt as if I had committed guest-abuse.
And if I haven't lost a couple of pounds while working hard in such
heat, I'm not going to be happy.
Terry "Squeaks" Pulliam Burd
--
"Most vigitaryans I iver see looked enough like their food to be
classed as cannybals."
Finley Peter Dunne (1900)
To reply, replace "spaminator" with "cox"