Here’s a Labor Day Gourmet Grilling Party Menu for those of you who might like to entertain!

For so many years, the neighborhood I lived in had a Gourmet dinner group that gathered for a dinner party one weekend every single month. There were twenty of us.  This is one of those dinners that we had, and this menu was a big time favorite of all of our gatherings.

Table centerpiece for Labor Day Gourmet Grilling Party

How to make a centerpiece for a summer party:

To create this centerpiece for your Labor Day Gourmet Grilling Party, use a rubber band to wrap asparagus around formula (or coffee) cans, stick a glass inside and arrange flowers in the glass.  Wrap raffia around the asparagus to  cleverly cover the rubber band.  Aren’t they wonderful centerpieces?

Our menu:
The featured beverage…

Blueberry Margaritas
Blueberry Margaritas (edged in sugar): Yum!

The appetizers…

Lima Bean Hummus
Herbed Lima Bean Hummus: This is very, very good. You have to play with the spices a bit to get the flavor that you’re looking for, but it’s unique and summery and perfect with veggies or pita chips or crackers.

Fresh Blueberry Salsa: It sounds unusual, but it’s a very summery approach to an appetizer, and it works. Dip a chip or two in this stuff, and you might have trouble stopping.

The starter…

Chilled Zucchini Soup
Chilled Zucchini Soup with Lemon- Cumin Shrimp & Cilantro Cream: These can served in small tea cups or another small cup.  Dunk the shrimp, and then sip the soup out the cups. It’s a gorgeous soup for an extremely hot day- great choice.

The main meal:

Gorgonzola Stuffed Burgers
Gorgonzola- Stuffed Beef Burgers with Sauteed Wild Mushrooms & Caramelized Red Onion Marmalade: Oh My! Everything about these burgers is perfect- the mushrooms, the marmalade and the hint of gorgonzola. These are definitely gourmet, and no extra condiments are needed.

Grilled Corn Salad: This is always a favorite salad recipe. It has a creamy vinaigrette that completely makes the salad. Everyone will ask for seconds!
Watermelon and Avocado Salad
Watermelon & Avocado Salad: This salad is the classic mix of watermelon, feta and greens, but it also has avocado added in.  It’s tossed in a raspberry vinaigrette. It’s a very good summer salad.

The dessert…

Fresh Peach Ice Cream
Fresh Peach Ice Cream with Vanilla- Scented Peaches: This is a creamy, creamy ice cream loaded with fresh peach flavor (not frozen peach chunks), and topped with peaches that have marinated in a vanilla bean-wine simple syrup. Oh yeah!

All recipes for this Labor Day Gourmet Grilling Party Menu are fantastic, and each would be a welcome addition to a Labor Day Barbecue.  Have a terrific holiday weekend of grilling, eating, relaxing & hanging out with friends. Be sure to try out a new recipe or two.

All recipes listed can be found by clicking on the recipe titles above.

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36 Comments

  1. Marie says:

    I love that centerpiece, I might have to borrow that. Lori all the food looks fantastic but I really want a sip of that margarita!

  2. maris says:

    I’m intrigued by the Herb/Lima Bean Hummus. I love hummus and have never heard of this kind; I have no doubt that it’s great though!

  3. Laurie says:

    What a beautiful spread.. and your photo’s are fabulous Lori!!

  4. Velva says:

    The Gourmet Club menu looks stunning! It is funny, how I stumbled upon your food blog as I just posted our Cooking Club evening.
    Your evening screams summer and it all looks so beautiful! I have made a note about the floral arrangement. I need to do that next time.

  5. Nick says:

    Wowser, those burgers look huge! What an awesome food lineup.

  6. Colleen says:

    This all looks fabulous! A nice twist on traditional dishes.