It's a Beach Celebration
Be sure that you have plenty of ice and a good cooler. When packing a cooler place the beverages on the bottom of the cooler and then cover them with ice. Place your food items in zippered baggies to keep them from getting wet and then put them on top of the ice to stay cool. If you will be using two coolers, put your beverages in one and the food in the other. In the cooler for food, use freezer packs to keep the food cold or put all of the ice in freezer bags. This way the food will stay cold and not get soggy. Try to minimize the times the cooler gets opened, every time it’s opened it lets the cold out. Whenever taking fresh meat to cook always be careful to keep it cold, in the heat it can go bad quickly.
Grilling burgers at the beach isn’t too difficult if you prepare a little first. Make the patties at home separating each patty with wax paper then placing them in a zippered freezer bags. Put your buns, chips and other snacks in a cloth grocery bag. Have a beach set of condiments, such as mayo, ketchup and mustard in squeeze bottles. This will make them easier to use at the beach and make clean up easier. Place some lettuce leaves, onion slices, pickles and sliced tomatoes in zipper bags. Taking cheese? Even if it’s pre-wrapped you can still put in zipper baggies to it keep fresh.
You can also take steak to grill at the beach although it could be a little tricky. Go ahead and pre-season your steak to your liking, even add a marinade to your steak in the baggie. Make sure to pack plastic plates for the steaks instead of foam or paper. Be sure to take some steak knives also even though eating with your fingers at the beach is also allowed. Some good vegetables to have with your beach steak are potato pockets.
To make Potato Pockets you will need to the peel potatoes and cut them into bite size pieces. Coat a rectangular piece of aluminum foil with olive oil. Add some garlic powder and chopped onion. Make a pocket with the foil, folding the corners and sealing tightly. You can place this in a freezer bag to tote in the cooler. Approximately fifteen minutes before grilling the steak, remove the pocket from the baggie and place it on the grill. Cook for 15 and turn often for even cooking.
Instead of taking the same old chips you can take some healthy and yummy snacks. Try adding some sliced apples, sprinkled with lemon juice to keep them from turning brown. Cut up carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, cucumber slices and olives. Place them in baggies so they will travel well in the cooler. Make some cheese cubes and add some whole pickles and place them in separate baggies to tote. Fill some celery stalks with cream cheese topped with raisins or with peanut butter. Packing some fruit like oranges, plums, peaches are perfect for the beach. Jerky such as beef or turkey is a great beach snack. Make up bags for each individual person. Any type of nut makes a good beach snack and they are healthy for you to.
To make your party a festive time use color plastic goods in red, white and blue. You may find most of these products reasonable price at dollar stores or even department stores. Poke sparklers or little flags into your burgers and steaks before serving, but use caution if you are entertaining small children. Play patriotic songs from a CD or on the radio. Use patriotic beach towels, beach chairs if you have them. Any of these ideas will make your gathering more festive.
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