Remember how summer felt when you were a kid? Those free and easy, almost endless days stretching all the way into evenings, the skin-friendly temperatures keeping you and your friends outdoors until what used to be bedtime.
Well, we want to feel that way again. We want to seize every moment of this summer and live it in a big way. So we’re stocking up on stuff that‘ll help us turn every summer meal into an outdoor event to remember.
Summer (happy) hours.
When we think summer drinks, we think sparkle, refreshment, color and a spirit of fun. So right now, our wine experts have charmed us with some flirty rosés and sparkling wines (that POP always gets the party started!) We’ve created some great recipes for summer spritzers. And we’re channeling our inner mixologists to make cocktails and mocktails with these clean, non-alcoholic Betty Buzz mixers by Blake Lively—and wow, are they good. Which is better, her acting, or her palate? Debate this on a porch swing over a Strawberry Buzz or two.
Cook less. Party more.
You know how it goes. Happy hour is usually so much fun, nobody leaves, and then they get hungry, and then what started as not-a-dinner party suddenly becomes one. This season, we’re strategically stocking our fridges so we can pull together an impromptu alfresco dinner in a flash. We’re talking Our Own Crab Cakes (to taste them is to love them, trust us), ready-to-grill marinated shrimp and burgers, Fresh Prep fruits veggies for a quick, simple side with one of Our Own dips.
And who doesn’t love a made-from-scratch local fruit pie for dessert, from the Willamette Valley Pie Company? Oh yeah. That’s summer on a fork right there.
Need more outdoor entertaining ideas? Here are some of our new favorite summer recipes:
Papaya Salad with Lobster Smoked Salmon Baguette
Here to serve.
To really conjure the summer evening outdoor magic, just add a few little touches, like these:
Totally Bamboo dinnerware & serveware—it’s lightweight, sustainable and recyclable, and just so cute.
Bouquets from Boxx Berry Farms and our farmers’ weekly favorites—because fresh flowers bring that summer brilliance to the table.
Light one of our locally made summer candles, like Big Dipper, Scents of the Northwest or Full Moon, to get the night glowing and bring the smell of the ocean to your place.
Want some summer magic to go?
Fill up a few Swig insulated wine tumblers, and bring your picnic to the park. Or the beach. Or just drop by the neighbors’ porch and show them how summer is done.