Day 20: Summer Entertaining GIVEAWAY from National Pork Board
Thanks for joining me in my “30 Days of Summer Entertaining” series. (Scroll down to the bottom for previous posts in this series) :)
Grilling is a big part of summer entertaining, so today’s post is a very exciting one!
Back in May, I was invited by my cute and inspirational friend, Marla Meridith, from Family Fresh Cooking, to attend a wonderful evening with … the National Pork Board. It was called a Pork Crawl, hosted by Jaden Hair from Steamy Kitchen. Basically, a group of bloggers went to some of the finest restaurants in Atlanta, where chefs created pork recipes in ways I’ve never experienced before.
Lori @ Recipe Girl, Angie @ Bakerella, Jenny @ Picky Palate, Jaden @ Steamy Kitchen, Sandy @ Reluctant Entertainer, Georgia @ Georgia Pellegrini, Marla @ Family Fresh Cooking, not pictured Carrie Minns @ La Pomme De Portland, and photo credit by Amanda @ Kevin & Amanda
And the night didn’t end there … when we got back to our hotel room, we were given a gift of great cooking tools and spices for making our own pork chops when we arrived home. (Items in very top photo – my favorite? The grilling pan and juicer! Both awesome!)
Yesterday I shared this fantastic recipe that our family enjoyed for an early Father’s Day celebration using fresh pork chops and glazed apricots.
Today I am sharing with YOU the exact same items I received from the National Pork Board, to give away here at RE to ONE LUCKY WINNER!
As the generosity continues … here are the items I’m giving away here on RE today:
Pork Be Inspired brand Apron
Pork Be Inspired Brochure
Digital Meat Thermometer
Cuisinart CCJ-100 Citrus Pro Juicer
Vacu Vin Pineapple Slicer
Norpro Grip-Ez Jalapeno Pepper Corer
Cuisinart Grill Pan (I’m most excited about this!)
Dry Ingredients (Salt, Light Brown Sugar, Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, Chili Powder)
If you are interested in receiving this generous gift from the National Pork Board, leave a comment and tell me:
What is it about summer entertaining that stressed you out?
Extra ways to win, 1 point each, and please come back and share the link.
-Tweet this giveaway (@SandyCoughlinRE)
-Share this post on your Facebook page
-Post this giveaway on your blog
-Become a brand NEW follower of RE Facebook page
-Become a brand NEW follower of ReluctantEntertainer.com (Brand NEW folks, easy to sign up with your email)Contest ends Wednesday at midnight, 6/22/11. Winner announced Thursday, 6/23/11 on RE.
(Very top photo credit of giveaway items from Carrie, La Pomme De Portland.)
If you’ve missed the last 19 days of this series, you can catch up now:
Day 1: Summer Entertaining is About the People
Day 2: When Perfect Robs You of Something Good
Day 3: Who To Invite to Dinner
Day 4: Planning the Menu for Outdoor Entertaining
Day 5: Setting the Table Using What You Have
Day 6: Using One Classic Water Glass
Day 7: Napkin Options for Summer Entertaining
Day 8: When You Feel Like Canceling the Party
Day 9: Leave Your Technology at the Front Door
Day 10: Candles That Enhance Good Conversation
Day 11: Serving Flavored Herb and Fruit Water
Day 12: Leafy Greens and a Tiny Bit of Agave
Day 13: Keeping Nut and Fruits and Cheeses on Hand for Easy Appetizers
Day 14: Move Your Table to a Different Space
Day 15: Greek Salad on a Stick and Getting the Kids Involved
Day 16: Three Lies of Perfectionism that Ruin Entertaining Moments
Day 17: Be Creative When You Run Out of Linens for Your Dinner Party
Day 18: Gather Around a Fire for Intimate Summer Entertaining
Day 19: Last Minute Father’s Day Invite and Pork Chops with Glazed Apricots
Feel free to grab my button and share it with your readers :).
Hello and welcome to my home and table!
I’m Sandy—lover of food, family, cooking, THE BIG BOARD, travel, and bringing people together. Through great recipes and connection around the table, we become better, stronger, and more courageous people. Feasting on Life is real, and every time we do it, we grow a little more. Read more...
wondering if it’s going to rain!
The thing about summer entertaining that stresses me out is the weather! It won’t quit raining this year!
running out of food or drinks!
What is going to stress me out this year is that I sold our nice patio table in our garage sale and now have no place to sit. What was I thinking?? I was selling and selling and someone asked if I had a patio dining set. Next thing I know I sold it and didn’t even charge them half of what it was worth. I am so mad at myself i could scream.
I would have to say the weather stresses me out the most – especially this time of year with those late afternoon thunderstorms that usually pop up on a daily basis. Thanks for the giveaway!!!
Hi Sandy – love your blog and website. I am a reluctant entertainer in the summer because I worry if the weather gets rainy or too hot then people will want to be inside and I have a small house. I hope your summer series helps me get over all of this negative talk in my head and just invite people over!
What stressed me out is trying to find a way to cook without heating up the house and having everyone’s body heat plus cooking heat making the experience physically uncomfortable for them and for me.
I stress about how clean my house is not! I know you say not to but I really am a “Reluctant Entertainer!’
The weather – a summer party is just not as much fun if you can’t be outside.
I follow your blog
I like you on Facebook
I posted the giveaway on Facebook
actually, if anything – I feel less stressed entertaining in the summer. It seems to be much easier to find grilled food that everyone will like. Plus, my husband does the cooking :)
Just became a follower on Facebook!
i get stressed worrying if it is going to be too hot to be outside…to grill…too much worry…not enough fun.
it might rain. gotta quit it!
Just became a New follower!
I think the thing that stresses me out most about outdoor entertaining is the weather! It is never predictable where I am from and it seems like you always have to have a plan B. The other thing that usually stresses me out is that I might run out of propane for my grill! Trust me, it has happened more than once :)
We don’t have any kids of our own, yet, but we’re just young and just got married! So my biggest stressor when others come over is people who let their kids wreak havoc in our home! We work hard to make it look nice…and I’ve learned to be more expressive when it comes to them doing something that just isn’t right.
I constantly crave having people over for a meal. I love entertaining. We are just going to start stiplulating that the kids should be left home with a babysitter so the adults can enjoy an evening!
(No, Mom, I don’t hate kids…) : )
Feeling like I don’t know how to make good side dishes that have that summery feeling.
Woohoo! Time is a big stress for me – there are always so many little things that I either overlook when planning or get tossed in unexpectedly. Oh well – it’s still worth it!
We just moved to a new state last spring, and rented for a year so now have a new house in a new state after living here for a year. :-) We love it! Our yard is much bigger than anything we have had before…which considering we moved from Southern CA doesn’t say a whole lot. While I would LOVE to entertain out back, what stresses me out is that we have no back yard furniture except for a few stacking chairs!
But we need to do some house work before we can buy patio furniture and a new BBQ (don’t tell my husband but we are all going in together to get him one for his birthday in a couple weeks).
So I have no where to serve guests outside.
My plan is to wait for it to be blazing hot and then invite our friends over to enjoy the air conditioning that no one seems to have here. Very weird, but it does create a fun opportunity for us.
What a great giveaway!
I always get nervous about our tiny house. IF the weather is terrible we would all have to end up inside!
I think what stresses me out the most about summer entertaining is giving up control since my husband is the griller. He does a great job but I have control issues…smile.
The weather cooperating and hopefully the food turns out.
I am ALWAYS concerned about presenting all the foods at the correct temperature: how to keep it cold and hot and protected from flies and not let anything dry out or melt! Yikes!