The Easiest Summer Party You Will Ever Host (Seriously)

It’s summer time and the living is easy – and so should be your parties.

If you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you know we are huge fans – huge! – of easy, elegant entertaining. It simply doesn’t make any sense to throw a complex and arduous party. Nothing about that says fun. So when the gorgeous new cookware and kitchen store, Cookery called us to ask if we would do the wine pairings for the food in their Summer Soirée cooking class, we were there with bells on.

Other reading: How to Throw a Party for 100 People

Cookery chef, Jessica Roberts, had planned a dead-easy, yet super creative and delicious menu for simple summer entertaining, and we were asked to pick three wines under $20 to go with the dishes.

What makes Jess’ menu so spectacular is that with a few tweaks you can make it gluten free or vegetarian, and you can keep the portions to small, tapas-style bites like Jess showed the class, or you can turn them into full-sized portions if you would prefer.

Without further ado, let us give you the definitive guide for hosting your Simple Yet Sensational Summer Soiree.

Welcome Cocktail:

• Vodka spiked lemonade with honey syrup and fresh thyme

We love to set the tone for party with themed cocktail, and what says Summer Soirée more than lemonade? This cocktail recipe was taken from the drink guide, “Summer Cocktails: Margaritas, Mint Juleps, Punches, Party Snacks, and More” by Maria Del Mar Sacasa.

When Life Gives You Lemons

Serves 1

• 2 ounces gin, vodka, white rum, pisco, or dry sake (we used vodka)
• 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice, plus 1/2 tsp finely grated lemon zest
• 1 tbsp Honey Syrup*, or more to taste
• Pinch salt
• Ice Cubes
• 1/4 cup club soda, chilled
• Lemon rounds, for garnish
• (We also garnished with fresh thyme, which is not included in the book)

Stir liquor, lemon juice and zest, honey syrup, and salt in an ice-filled shaker for about 30 seconds. Add club soda and stir just to combine. Strain into an ice-filled glass and garnish with lemon rounds, if desired. 

*Honey Syrup – Combine 1 cup of honey and 1 cup of water in a small saucepan. Bring to boil and stir to dissolve honey. Remove from heat and cool completely.

Wines:

When it comes serving a crowd, we like to stick to the three “friendlies”: Food friendly, crowd friendly and, most importantly, wallet friendly. Chardonnay can inspire controversy as many think they don’t like heavily oaked wines – but not all Chardonnays are heavily oaked! Especially when paired to food – like grilled seafood, barbecue chicken, turkey burgers and pork loin, Chards can really shine. Reds, of course, are dynamite with grilled meats, but we also like reds with lower tannin to offer more food versatility. Finally, roses are totally on trend right now – because they’re delicious! Dry and crisp with mouth watering acid these wines are perfect for so many summer items from ceviche, to light fish dishes to salads.

Ghost Pines Chardonnay, California, $16.95 LCBO 308122
Round and ripe with a creamy palate and flavours of grilled pineapple, creme brulee, hazelnut and vanilla. 

Mas des Bressades Cuvée Tradition Rosé, France, $15.95 Vintages 950576
Bright red cherry and strawberry mixes with tart rhubarb and light earthy herbal notes like fresh thyme.

13th Street Gamay Noir, VQA Niagara Peninsula, $19.95 Vintages 177824
A top Gamay from Niagara that’s robust and deep with flavours of black fruit, peppercorn and earthy notes. 

Menu:

Roasted Beet, Ricotta Salata and Honey Crostini, paired to Gamay.
The earthiness of the wine complimented the earthy notes of the beets and the salty cheese brought out the fruit of the Gamay. 

Roast Pork Bánh Mì Canapes (recipe below), paired to Rosé
A killer wine pairing. This made us happy as the Vietnamese street food sandwich is extravagant in its flavours and therefore potentially deadly for wine pairing: sharp pickled daikon, rich pâté, aromatic cilantro and salty fish and soy sauces it’s ridiculously delicious…but can be a sommelier’s nightmare. The rosé was brilliant as the vibrant acidity matched the picked veg and cut though the fatty pâté. The slight herbaceous note to the wine could also stand up to the cilantro and the berry flavours are a natural compliement to the roast pork. 

Bloody Mary Scallop Ceviche (recipe below), paired to Rosé
For the same reasons as the bánh mì, the acidity of the wine stands up to the acidity of the ceviche and doesn’t clash with the intense flavours.  

Taleggio, Proscuitto and Mostarda Mini Grilled Cheese Sandwiches
Who doesn’t love a grilled cheese? Perfect party food. And these were delicious with the rich saltiness of the cheese and meat, offset by the sweet mostarda. Chardonnay was a perfect partner for this dish, as the wine and food are of the same weight and the flavours compliment each other. 

Strawberry Mascarpone Hazelnut Tart
We don’t always love pairing wine with dessert because if the wine isn’t sweeter than the food, it can end up tasting flat and bitter. But you could go with either the rose or the chardonnay as the rosé would compliment the strawberries and cut through the mascarpone, while the Chardonnay would compliment the hazelnut crust and the mascarpone. 

 Recipes:

Roast Pork Bánh mì Canapés

Yield: 24 canapés

• 1 pork tenderloin (about 1 lb), trimmed of fat and silver skin
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 1 tbsp fish sauce
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• ½ tsp pepper
• 3 tbsp vegetable oil

• 1 large carrot, peeled, julienned and cut into 2” lengths
• 1 medium daikon radish, peeled, julienned and cut into 2” lengths
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1 tablespoon sea salt
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup rice wine vinegar

• 24 Crostini
• 200 grams paté
• ½ cup mayonnaise
• Cilantro

1. In a large resealable bag, combine garlic, brown sugar, fish sauce, soy sauce, pepper and vegetable oil. Add pork tenderloin and let marinade for at least 30 minutes at room temperature or for 4 hours in the fridge.
2. In a large bowl, combine julienned carrots & daikon radish, sugar and salt. With your fingers, massage the vegetables with the salt and sugar until dissolved. Add the water and vinegar and pack the mixture into a 1 litre mason jar. Let marinate at least 1 hour before using. For best results, marinate overnight in the refrigerator. Keeps 1 week.
3. Preheat oven to 425 F. Heat a stainless steel fry pan over medium-high heat. When hot, remove pork tenderloin from marinade and shake off excess liquid. Place in pan and sear on all sides, about 2 minutes each side.
4. Place pan in oven and roast pork for 15 minutes for medium doneness. Remove from oven and place pork tenderloin on a cutting board. Tent with foil and rest for 5 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, lightly spread each crostini with mayonnaise and then a good smear of paté. Thinly slice the pork against the grain and place one piece of pork on top of the paté. Top with 1 tbsp of the pickled vegetables and a sprig of cilantro. Serve immediately.

Bloody Mary Scallop Ceviche

Yield: 6 servings

• 1 pound dry scallops (10/20s), quartered
• 1 tbsp grated fresh horseradish
• 1 cup diced celery (1/8” dice)
• 1 cup tomato juice
• 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 3 tbsp fresh lime juice
• 1/3 cup vodka
• A few dashes Worcestershire sauce
• A few dashes Tabasco sauce (more to taste)
• 1 tsp freshly ground pepper
• ½ tsp sea salt

• 3 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 6 stuffed green olives
• 6 pickled pepperoncini peppers
• 6 celery spears with leaves
• 6 thin lemon wedges

1. Combine all ingredients except for the garnishes in a non-reactive bowl (not metal). Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, up to 4 hours. Stir occasionally.
2. Divide scallop mixture between 6 small glasses or wine glasses. Sprinkle with bacon and a little freshly ground black pepper.
3. Skewer a green olive and a pepper on each of 6 toothpicks. Place toothpick across top of glass and add a celery spear and a lemon wedge on the side of the glass.