I recently traveled to East Hampton after not being there for two years. It was so nice to finally be “home” for a bit. Cindy and I had also not seen each other for two years and although we spend our days at the beach together in Amagansett, we wanted to get our families together for a barbeque.
It’s hard to get our husbands to leave the beach early for anything, so we put them in charge of grilling and Cindy and I handled the rest with a simple meal. Our menu consisted of a great cheese & fruit board, Fig & cheese toast, sliders, a salad, potatoes, and of course, one amazing cocktail! Mostly Ina’s recipes of course!
Nothing better for us than a simple outdoor BBQ with the kids. The weather cooperated so we all ate outside and just had a good time!
Pink Grapefruit Margaritas
We got started with a cocktail, of course! Lots of fresh citrus juice in this one. We loved the flavor profile of the grapefruit and the color was divine! Not too sweet and just delicious! It can be prepared ahead of time and poured into insulated cooler cups at the beach. If you are entertaining at home, maybe spice it up and serve in fun Ascutney Martini Glasses! Here we served them up in the Double Old Fashioned glass from the Simple Glassware Collection.
Fig & Cheese Toast
How pretty is this? We could not find fresh figs so we just left them out. Really easy to prepare, really delicious and it looks beautiful on the Narrow Platter. A win!
Cheese & Fruit Plate
Our Feasting Board is a great backdrop for a big cheese dish! We followed Ina’s rule of three kinds of cheese and added big bunches of fruit and earthy crackers. Always a hit with the adults and the kids! This assortment can also be arranged and served on a big white plate like the Flat Round Platter by Pillivuyt.
Sliders
Always fun to eat! We prepared the burgers ahead of time and cooked them up later that afternoon. These have great flavor and they were really juicy! We served them up in the Buffet Platter which is the perfect dish for these. We also sliced up some tomatoes and red onion and served those on the Small Oval Serving Platter.
Middle Eastern Salad
This salad was easy to prepare and looks amazing on our Large Oval Serving Platter. We got fresh herbs and vegetables from Balsam Farms Farm Stand and served homemade pita chips on the side. Delish!
Crispy English Potatoes
Our kids love potatoes! This recipe has crispy pancetta that cooks with the potatoes. It’s SO good! We boiled the potatoes ahead of time and then put them in the oven before our families got home from the beach. We cooked them in a Half Sheet Pan and served them up in our Deep Cecil Bowl.
We finished off the night with this amazing store-bought cake from Montauk Bake Shoppe! We plated it in our hot-selling Hotel Silver Cake Stand. The cake was beautiful but honestly, everything looks incredible on Hotel Silver!
For us, there's nothing like a good old-fashioned barbecue with our kids and lots of delicious food. Find all the recipes below. Cheers! Cassandra & Cindy-
Ina Garten's Pink Grapefruit Margaritas
Ingredients
1 lime, cut in wedges, optional
Kosher salt, optional
1 cup ruby red grapefruit juice
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lime juice (4 limes)
1 cup orange liqueur, such a Triple Sec
2 cups ice
1 cup white tequila
Directions
If you like a salt rim on the glasses, rub the lime around the edge of the glass and then dip the rim of each glass lightly in a plate of kosher salt. Set aside to dry.
Combine the grapefruit juice, lime juice, orange liqueur, and ice in a blender and puree until smooth. Pour into a large pitcher and stir in the tequila. If youre not serving the margaritas in salted glasses, stir 1/4 teaspoon of salt into the pitcher of margaritas. Believe me, it will make a difference!
Serve ice cold.
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Ina Garten's Fig & Cheese Toast
Ingredients
1 (1-pound) loaf country bread or 2 baguettes, halved, and sliced crosswise 3/8-inch thick
1 (8.5-ounce) jar good fig spread, such as Dalmatia (see Cook's Note)
8 ounces plain creamy cheese, such as goat cheese, cream cheese, or ricotta
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 ripe fresh figs, halved and thinly sliced lengthwise
Microgreens
Syrupy balsamic vinegar
Directions
Toast the bread in a toaster and while it is still warm, spread the fig spread on each slice to cover it entirely. Place the cheese in a bowl and heat in the microwave for 30 to 45 seconds, until it's creamy and spreadable. Spread a layer of the cheese on the fig spread, leaving the edges of the fig spread visible. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Cut each toast crosswise to make appetizers that will be easy to eat. Place a fig slice on each piece, top with a few micro-greens, and drizzle lightly with the balsamic vinegar. Serve at room temperature.
Cook’s Note
I prefer fig spread, which has less sugar than fig jam or fig preserves, but of course you can use either. Choose a fig spread that is quite thick or it will be hard to spread the goat cheese on top.
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Ina Garten's Easy Cheese Board
4 comments
Hi Jenn! We don’t sell that pitcher but one that is very similar in shape is the Echo Lake Carafe by Simon Pearce. Check it out! https://www.cassandraskitchen.com/collections/glassware/products/echo-lake-cocktail-carafe
Hello Ginny Bowie! We used the Sancerre Dinner Dishes by Pillivuyt! https://www.cassandraskitchen.com/collections/dinneware
Hi looks like a beautiful day! Can you tell me which dinner dishes you used for the BBQ?
Hello. Do you sell the pitcher that is being used for margaritas or have a link for where to purchase it? Thank you!