I made the Tomato Soup early and put it in my crock pot on the "keep warm" setting and got busy making the little cucumber appetizers for my company. They were just cute as a bug. I first striped a cucumber and then sliced it into little disks. I took some cream cheese and dry ranch dressing mix and enough milk to make it the proper consistency and piped it onto each cucumber slice. Then I sliced some radishes and put one on its end on top of the cream, decorated them with parsley and they were just adorable!! I put them in a covered dish and put them in the frig until I was ready for them. I just had a few items to complete before my guests got here and one of them was marinating the chicken and pork, peeling potatoes and putting them in water to hold until I was ready for them, cutting up the broccoli and peeling about 20-25 cloves of garlic. Did I just say one? I put up the umbrella, put down the pillows on the chairs, got the coffee ready to perk and ran for the shower.
So here's how it went down - my guests got here about 12:30 and we walked around the place, looked at the gardens and talked about herbs and vegetables. We got back to the house and we were about to give up on the idea of sitting outside, when the sun came out and it started to get warmer. I brought out a cheeseball and crackers, my cucumber appetizers, and warm Gogonzola Bruschetta and we ate on the deck overlooking the lake. The bruschetta was a major hit and I've put the recipe on my Recipe Page. Then I put the chicken I had marinated previously onto the grill and put the potatoes and garlic in the oven. After about 20 minutes I put the marinated pork on the grill and added the broccoli to the potatoes and garlic in the oven. I then invited everyone inside for homemade Tomato Soup and/or Cucumber Soup. They were real champs and tried both of the soups but I think the winner was the Tomato. I then dressed their salads and put them on the table. After that I went out and brought in the chicken and pork, pulled the potatoes, garlic and broccoli out of the oven and plated everything up with a side of stir fried peppers and onions along with garlic bread. By the time we finished I can honestly say I don't think anyone was hungry!!
I always love feeding the catfish in our lake and so far this Spring I had not fed them so I decided that I would ask my guests to join me in the "first" feeding of the Spring. The beautiful catfish did not fail me. They came up and ate like they were starving, which I'm positive they were NOT!! Then we all went on a walk and came back into the house for Strawberry Shortcake and coffee. Amazingly enough, we had been talking, laughing, cooking, and eating for almost 5 hours. The last of my guests left around 6:00 p.m.
It's been a long and wonderful day. I love entertaining and I love having lively conversation. I can't believe how the weather just worked perfectly in my favor today to make everything go so smoothly. So, for me, the day is basically finished. I'm going to take a walk now and have some quiet time.
If there are any of you out there who are reading my blog tonight and you happen to be a Mom - let me say that you will not be forgotten tomorrow - HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY.