Fall is a wonderful time to entertain outdoors when it's finally cool enough to enjoy the gardens. This year I decided to invite friends for a casual buffet. The table will be set under a tree so the food would be shaded during the late evening sun that was yet to set. The table cloth I'm using is an antique of sorts, dating back to the 1950s that I kept of my mother's. The heavy pottery dishes are also dated by to the 80s. The centerpiece was easy-a bunch of non-culinary herbs that long since gone to seed and needed to be cut back.
Everything's casual with most people sitting on blankets thrown down on the grass. With music coming from a nearby porch at just the right volume to encourage conversation, it was an event enjoyed by all.
For the menu, I chose a meat loaf. It's easy to make and I don't know anyone who doesn't love a really good one and this rendition is delicious. I'm serving it with slices of beefsteak tomatoes I'd picked up from a nearby farm stand and a pungent sauce made with arugula. The pasta salad uses Swiss chard and the last of the season's basil. All of the recipes are for six portions, but it would be easy to bake two or three veal loaves and increase the pasta salad to accommodate a crowd. Most everyone that we know is dieting so I just offered a plate of low-fat and nonfat Cheddar cheeses and basket of apples we'd picked up on a trip to a Texas apple orchard the weekend before. Nobody complained there wasn't a fancy dessert, but if you feel inclined there's lots of dessert recipes on www.diabetic-recipes.com. Don't forget to light some torches designed to keep the bugs away. Here in Texas the flies and mosquitoes are huge and unwanted guests at my picnics.
(for the recipes, click on The Recipes or click on the individual recipe above)
FTG
