Lakeside Hosting With Sweet ‘N’ Eats

by Deborah C. Gerbers + Sue Pais

So, we’re here with ideas to spark creativity and re-introduce color, tastes, textures, and yes, even sprinkles and sparkles to re-energize the fun in hosting.

Yes, when it’s time for lakeside hosting, fun should be the foundation. So, follow our tips and ideas for the ultimate gathering— one that earns sparkles in guests' eyes, not just on your ice cream.

Instead of a simple plate of cookies, why not make fun ice cream sandwiches?

Make sandwiches ahead of your gathering, or let guests make their own. Use any variety of cookie you prefer, but classic chocolate chip is a fun start and safe bet for your guests.

To make the sandwiches, simply scoop your favorite ice cream between two cooled cookies, then roll the ‘sandwich’ in the topping of your choice. To add various colors, consider using ice cream flavors such as black cherry, mint chocolate chip, pistachio, strawberry, or orange-vanilla. Consider toppings such as mini-chocolate chips, sundae sprinkles, colored sugars, cookie or candy bar crumbles, minimarshmallows, chopped peanuts or almond slivers. Options are as endless as your imagination. Or, dip sandwiches in melted chocolate.

For cookies, use place ‘n bake if you wish (no judgement here!), or, if you wish to make them from scratch, give this classic cookie recipe a try.

Ingredients: 2 ¼ cup flour 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon salt sift above three ingredients together 1 cup butter, room temperature ¾ cup sugar ¾ cup brown sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla ½ teaspoon water cream above five ingredients with mixer

1. Sift flour mixture of top three ingredients. 2. Cream next five ingredients in large bowl. 3. Add two eggs to creamed mixture. 4. Add the sifted flour mixture. 5. Stir in one 12-ounce package of chocolate chips. 6. Spray cooking sheets with non-stick spray.

Drop dough on sheet in uniform sizes. 7. Bake at 375 degrees, 10-12 minutes. 8. Cool on rack.

While finger-foods are still an ideal option for social gatherings, pretzel bowls and tiny sandwiches have been set aside. Their replacement offers an engaging, colorful, versatile, fun, delicious offering called ‘charcuterie.’

While it used to be referred to as just a collection of cold, cooked meats, the concept has blossomed to include much, much more.

smaller parties. If you plan to serve your board with longer items like asparagus or strands of grapes, go with a longer rectangular board. Likewise, smaller plates can better accommodate bite-sized pieces of salami and cheese cubes. Small bowls and prep cups (like the steel ones used in restaurants for sauces and condiments) can be used to hold olives, nuts, and dried fruits so they don’t roll around on the board with the other items.

For larger parties, serving several different boards with different themes of various snacks can offer your guests a wide selection of foods from which to choose.

Yes, charcuterie is a fancy culinary term— but the foodie trend has evolved into a much more sophisticated arrangement including cheeses, tapenades, spreads, crackers, nuts, fruits, and vegetables. It’s an easy way to display munchies for a crowd of any size, and the possibilities are endless.

When creating a charcuterie board, consider the size of the group you will be serving and then choose an appropriately sized platter for the foundation of your charcuterie board. It can be a simple wooden cutting board, elegant marble slab, a slate hotplate, antique porcelain platter, or a simple square dinner plate for

Follow these tips and you’ll be a charcuterie artist in no time:

• One board may display cured meats like prosciutto, salami, and pepperoni with accompanying cheeses like string mozzarella and wedges of parmesan, and a few fruits like grapes or apple slices.

• Another board could have soft Brie, rolls of mortadella, asparagus rolled up with ham, and some olives. Be creative and make it fun!

• Try to incorporate different textures of meats, cheeses, crunchy vegetables, and crackers.

• Offer small dishes of olive tapenade or hummus for dipping carrots and sliced • Harder cheeses like cheddar and parmesan can be cut into crumbles or wedges, while softer ones like Brie and

Camembert can be left in wheels for guests to cut themselves with cheese knives.

• There are lots of harder textured meats that guests can cut themselves, like smoked sausages and salamis, and a spreadable meat like pâté (chicken or duck liver). Some popular charcuterie meats include guanciale, pancetta, hard salami, prosciutto, and mortadella.

• When building your charcuterie board, think about structure and visual interest.

Meats can be a good base, followed by cheeses in between, then bowls of nuts and olives, and finally sprigs of fresh herbs like dill or basil to fill in any small gaps on the platter.

• Create height and dimension with sturdy

Italian breadsticks, piles of rolled deli meats, and pyramids of cubed cheeses.

Stacks of crackers can hold a bunch of berries upright as well.

photos: shutterstock.com

Use what’s readily available. Consider inseason fresh produce whenever possible to get the most for your money. Think fresh summer berries, winter melons, and even dried fruits like cherries, apricots, and banana chips when fresh fruit is not available. Any box of crackers or jar of nuts you have on-hand will complement your charcuterie board, as will simple deli meats like smoked turkey or ham you already have in the meat drawer. Basic items can be jazzed up with fresh herbs and cornichons, for example. Charcuterie boards are a fun way to serve at parties— so use what you have and your guests are sure to be delighted.

For some great inspiration, check out the amazing charcuterie cups available at the Sleepy Owl in Syracuse. They also offer catering services for events for all sizes, with incredible spreads and charcuterie boards to wow your party guests. Their platters of meats, cheeses, and munchies are truly works of art!

According to Ashley Dillon of the Sleepy Owl, “There is no right or wrong way to make boards… Have fun with it and it will turn into artwork! … and if you’re looking for that special something as you bring friends and family together this summer, or if you’re looking to match the perfect bottle of wine with the best possible flavor profile, we make our boards custom to what the customer wants and needs,” she said. “What makes our charcuterie boards so amazing is our creative mix of art, flavor blend, and tradition.”

So, how do the pros create such delicious works of art? “We start with select, top-quality cured meats beautifully arranged, and some even in the shape of roses to add that eye-catching accent. Next, we add local and international cheeses which will surely please your palate. We use fresh, aged, cow's milk, sheep's milk and goat's milk cheeses. To add the family touch, we make mini cheeseballs from our grandma's recipe (Ashley's grandmother-in-law Mary Ellen Bever). Vegetables are sliced in artistic designs to add not only crunch, but beauty. A must is to add summer berries, nuts, olives, pickles, jams or honey and topped off with fresh herbs. All of our boards come with Artisan bread and crackers. We always top off our boards with hand-dipped chocolate dipped strawberries to set our boards apart.” photos by Sleepy Owl Restaurant

So, let’s re-engage our hosting prowess and celebrate even further how far we’ve come in the last year. Add color, fun, and sparkle back to offerings when you host. And keep the celebrations at home— beautifully, tastefully, deliciously, and with the best ingredient we’ve been missing for so long: togetherness.

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