Summer Burger Bar Potluck

Summertime is such a great time to host a get-together,

 especially when we can use the great outdoors as our kitchen and dining room. 

 For our year end Care Group barbecue we did burgers on the fire pit

and - to make it slightly different - there was no ketchup, mustard or relish on the table.

But we had an assortment of toppings that we could mix up

whichever way we pleased;

regular and spicy mayo

Havarti and Swiss cheese

warm roasted beets

mango salsa

sauteed mushrooms

crispy bacon

deep fried onion rings  

fried eggs

 I have a hard time deciding which I favor most . . .

the egg, bacon, avocado and spicy mayo

or the mango, cheese, lettuce and spicy mayo

I'd love to extend this kind of burger bar to include fish, chicken

and more options for toppings and buns . . .

but this was a beginning of something that was quite fun.

Everyone joined in bringing toppings and a variety of salads 

. . . so much so, that this hostess got off quite easy. 

Some easy twists and tricks to try

 . . . use sambal oelek (Asian section) to spice up mayo to personal taste

. . . use ripe mangoes for salsa to make it more like a thick spread

. . .  once egg whites are done, cover with lid to steam to desired done-ness

Spicy mayo:

1 cup mayo

2 Tbsp sambal oelek

1 Tbps soy sauce

2 tsp grated ginger

Mango salsa:

2 ripe mangoes, finely chopped

1/2 cup cucumber, finely chopped

1 very small shallot, finely chopped

2 Tbsp OJ from frozen concentrate

2 Tbsp cilantro, chopped

and/or 1 Tbps fresh mint, chopped

1/4 tsp salt

Fried eggs:

crack onto large non-stick pan

wiped with a tad amount of butter

and cook till top of egg is set.

Serve in pan.

Food and friends together make for good times -
they are opportunities to build a foundation
that will not crumble when hard times come along.