Summer Entertaining || Tents, Hot Dogs and Guacamole

During the summer months we love having friends and their kids over for easy and fun meals.  We love doing casual family gatherings where the kids can enjoy the pool while we adults relax and catch-up.  Nothing screams summer like grilled hot dogs and fries do for occasions like this.  Hebrew National hot dogs are where are loyalties lie when it comes to franks and the ones we use to treat our friends because quality ingredients are very important to us.  Plus they are just so delicious. 

Let me tell you what we did for this occasion.  First, to add some ambiance for the kids during this gathering, my daughter and I built a tent between two trees for the kids to enjoy.  This would definitely increase the kid excitement factor, I mean what kid doesn't love a secret hangout where no adults are allowed? Here is how we did it-

We used three large tablecloths (two for the sides and one for the floor).  We tied the corners of the tablecloths to the tree branches at the top with some yarn.  We then tied the bottom corners of the tablecloths to some sticks we found on our yard and used them as stakes to open up the bottom of the tent.  My daughter decorated it with some hanging flowers and some paper lanterns she had done at a friend's house (DIY to come later).  Easy, right?  And wow did the kids love it! 

We served our young guests food baskets with our all-time favorite Hebrew National hot dogs in buns with a side of french fries.    Add a little Gulden's mustard and Hunt's ketchup and you have yourself a taste of summer.

The set-up for the kids was pretty sweet, but the adults also had a great meal.  Instead of french fries for the adults we offered homemade guacamole and chips.  I know guacamole is not the first thing that comes to mind when you think of eating a hot dog, but everyone raved about the combination.  They thought it was clever and unexpected.  Here is my super easy Guacamole recipe-

Easiest Guacamole-  (for 4 people)

Ingredients:

4 avocados 

1/4 cup chopped onion

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

Juice of 1/2 a lime

regular salt to taste

black salt to garnish

Directions:

Mash up the avocados with a fork. Add in the chopped cilantro and onion. Add the regular salt and squeeze in the juice of half a lime.  Mix it up a bit more. Garnish with the black salt and you are done!!

So you see how easy it is to host a casual afternoon with friends?  Just grill up some quality Hebrew National franks that everyone will love (adults and kids alike), create special space solely for the kids, and surprise your friends with an unexpected food pairing to keep them entertained.  What are some of your favorite tips for casual entertaining?

"With grilling season upon us, everyone is craving an all-American hot dog. What makes a kosher hot dog different? It's all about what makes the cut ( and what doesn't).  Hebrew National is choosy about what goes into their franks - only 100% pure kosher beef so you know what you're getting and they taste great."

Disclosure: Compensation was provided by Hebrew National via Mode Media.  The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Hebrew National."

[ all photos by AC]