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Saturday, June 22, 2013

Weekend Cooking- A Family Vacation


This post is part of Beth Fish Reads' Weekend Cooking.  If you have anything related to food, cookbook reviews, novel or non-fiction book reviews, recipes, movie reviews, etc., head over to Beth Fish Reads and add your post. Or, if you want to read food related posts, head over to read what some interesting people have to say about food!


Every few years, my husband family of 28 (!) tries to get together for a weeklong vacation. We are heading back to a beautiful house in Dewey Beach, Delaware where we enjoy sun, sand, the ocean, great meals and each other's company. This year, we are leaving next Saturday, enjoying the 4th of July together.

With that many people, we try to be as organized as possible. We divide up kitchen supplies- paper products, condiments, cleaning supplies- and everybody signs up to bring what they have stocked in their homes (and can fit in their car).

There are six families, so we each take one night to cook dinner for all. It has worked out wonderfully in the past, with each family making their specialty. With Pinterest, we can share the recipes we are making and ask for input from the rest of the crew.

I made a board called Food For A Party, and I put recipes in there that I can make for just this occasion. My sister-in-law (the foodie) even created a board with restaurants she wants to try there; I love that idea!

This year we are bringing the first night's meal, which I will make this week and freeze. When we get to Dewey Beach, I'll put it on the stove and reheat. I'm making Pulled Pork Sandwiches from a recipe by Robert Irvine from the Food Network. I made this for New Year's Day a few years ago and it was a big hit.


We'll pair this with a pasta salad and a fruit salad, and for dessert, I found this super simple Reese's  Cookie Brownie Stack. I made trial run this week and they were gone in a very short time. It's got all of the sinfully good things we love- cookie dough, Reese's Peanut Butter Cup and brownie mix.


We're doing Happy Hour too, and for that I'm making this new recipe I found for So Cal Fajita Dip. It's perfect to make using leftover steak and roasted peppers from the night we have roasted vegetables. I made this last week and the guys gobbled it down.


With this, we're making Raspberry Mango Sangria that we tried a few months back from Martha Stewart. It is a refreshing summer drink we first made a few weeks ago.


It's going to be a busy week leading up to vacation and I've got to make a Costco run to prepare. If you have any favorite recipes to feed a crowd, share them in comments.

13 comments:

  1. I love that creative use of pinterest -- recipes, restaurants, and why not places to visit? The recipes you picked sound wonderful. I'm going to check out that fajita dip.

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  2. Sounds like you've got a wonderful feast planned. Love pulled pork! What a nice tradition for your husband's family to plan these vacations together. :)

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  3. We like to do multi-family vacations with my siblings/parents every few years and divide up cooking/supplies, too . The biggest challenge is trying to find a rental to accommodate the large crowd. We're past due, but everyone is shying away from organizing. Any suggestions? Did you find the house through VRBO?

    Your food choices are sure to be a hit!

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    1. JoAnn- that is the hardest part, finding a place that accommodates 28! We found this rental through a realtor in Dewey Beach years ago and have returned several times.
      We go home to the Finger Lakes every summer and have found rentals there through VRBO and HomeAway, but they were for smaller places. We've had good luck doing that. This year we're going to be on Skaneateles Lake.

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    2. Thanks, Diane. The place we found on Hilton Head Island was through a realtor, too. Summer is the perfect time to be on Skaneateles Lake!

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  4. Oh my! What fabulous food you are having!

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  5. that's one heck of a big house party. Have fun.

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  6. 28.....that number is still rolling around in my head. I don't know that many family members!
    Certainly I will be checking out all these mouth watering recipes and photos on Pinterest. Have a wonderful time!

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  7. Wow, that sounds like a delicious vacation! I don't see how you could fail to have fun! Be sure to let us know how all of those recipes turn out.

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  8. What fun! I love that beautiful sangria -- definitely a great start to a celebratory week!

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  9. Ha! I think my husband and I could POSSIBLY manage preparing dinner for 28, since he has cooked in restaurants and a hospital before, but I can't envision the rest of my family trying it on the other nights! Sounds like a fantastic and fun vacation!

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  10. What a great week with family! I love that Happy Hour is planned complete with snack and drink - that is my kindh of Happy Hour! Have a fun week!

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  11. How great that everyone manages to get together for a week! That's hard for my extended family to pull off and there are only 3 families involved. Your menu looks terrific!

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