How to Host an Outdoor Movie Night Party Video from Talk of the Town in Nashville

I was so excited to be in Nashville again today for Talk of the Town, Nashville's top rated talk show! We talked about lots of fun ideas for summer entertaining and fun around the house including how to host an outdoor movie night party, complete with snack bar and your own big screen. This is the easiest party to host; make lots of serve-yourself snacks, add popcorn and movie candy and you've got a drive-in in the back yard. Thanks to all of the great people at NewsChannel 5 in Nashville... we hope you had as much fun as we did!

THROW AN OUTDOOR MOVIE NIGHT PARTY VIDEO FROM NASHVILLE'S TALK OF THE TOWN

SOURCES:

Gemmy Airblown Inflatable Movie Screen about $200 from Wal-Mart.com

Red Carpet novelties, movie clapboards, and popcorn boxes from Oriental Trading Company

Martie's Vanilla Bean Plantation Lemonade

What tastes better than icy cold lemonade on a hot day? My sweet Southern variation... Vanilla Bean Plantation Lemonade, which is fresh lemonade infused with vanilla. It's simple, delicious and the perfect foundation for many adult mix-ins: sweet tea vodka, raspberry vodka, spiced rum, and even bourbon.

MARTIE'S VANILLA BEAN PLANTATION LEMONADE

2 cups fresh squeezed lemon juice

1 cup sugar  (to taste, add more if you like a sweeter lemonade)

7-8 cups water (based on how strong you like your lemonade)

1-2 vanilla beans (I like a very vanilla flavor so I use 2 beans)

Split the vanilla bean and scrape out the seeds. Make a simple syrup: Add 1 cup of the water, the sugar, and the vanilla bean and seeds to a pan. Bring to a boil and turn off heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Let cool completely. Remove the bean once the simple syrup is cooled. In a large pitcher add the vanilla simple syrup, lemon juice, and water.

Lemonade Serving Tips: On a hot day, I will use 1 cup less water because I know the lemonade will become diluted with the melting ice. Often, I will freeze lemonade into ice cubes or freeze large plastic containers of lemonade. I put the lemonade into a large plastic milk jug or other repurposed plastic bottle. Freeze solid. A few hours before the party, I remove them from the freezer and allow them to become slushy. Soooo good on a hot day!

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Easy Weekend Grilling: Hot Dogs, Brats and Sausage Dogs (and a beer)

Everyone loves a good hot dog. I guess there's nothing that says summer like a good ball park hot dog... or hamburger. But today is all about the dogs... an easy, affordable way to feed a bunch of folks and make them really happy, too!

Rather than just the standard hot dog, I decided to grill up different varieties of hot and sweet sausages: chicken and sage, chicken and apple, and spicy Italian along with some traditional brats. There is a trick to grilling really good sausages. You have to get them done all the way through yet keep them moist and not char the heck out of them on the outside. My trick to the perfect sausage is to pre-cook them first in beer. You can also do this with water but the beer really adds something extra to the flavor.

MARTIE'S GRILLED SAUSAGES

2 1/2 bottles of your favorite beer (reserving the other 1/2 for the peppers)

1 dozen fresh sausages, any kind. I like the spicy chicken or Italian sausages best

2 tablespoons olive oil

Pour the beer into a large pot. Add the sausages. Bring to a boil and then immediately turn off the heat. Let the sausages sit in the beer until it cools to room temperature.

To grill: Get your coals to a medium heat. Remove the sausages from the beer and brush them with a little of the olive oil. Grill about 10 minutes or until done. The time will depend on the size of the sausage and the heat.

THREE PEPPER AND TWO ONION HOT DOG TOPPING

1 each red, green, and yellow bell pepper, seeded and sliced into strips

1 small white onion, sliced into strips

1 small red onion, sliced into strips

1 small jalapeno pepper, seeded and sliced into small strips (optional)

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 bottle beer (I like to use a lager but use your favorite)

salt and pepper

Put all of the ingredients except the beer into a bowl and toss together to coat. Turn out onto a hot pan or skillet. Cook over medium-high heat. Don't stir too frequently; allow the veggies to caramelize slightly before stirring. After the veggies have been cooking for about 3 minutes, add the beer. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, allowing the beer to reduce. Stir occasionally.  

Some people like a steamed bun for their hot dogs. I prefer a toasted bun. Brush a little of the olive oil on the bread and toast it lightly (too crusty will result in a broken bun= no fun!).

Shout out to a new favorite beer: Red Brick Pale Ale. They're out of Atlanta, GA. Check them out.

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Easy Summer Dinner Party Dessert: Prosecco and Popsicles!

Looking for a super easy and super fast dessert for your dinner party, supper club, or get-together? This one is a breeze and everyone will love it! Now, you can make your own popsicles like I did or you can get some really delicious flavors at most organic grocers. Even Wal-Mart has some Mexican "paletas" (gourmet ice pops)  which are a bit exotic and really delicious. No matter what variety you choose, this dessert is easy, elegant, and absolutely a crowd-pleaser! You can match your colors to your party's color scheme, or serve a variety of flavors like I have here!

So, all you have to do is to make sure your pops are really frozen so they don't melt too fast. Also, chill the Prosecco. When you are ready to serve, just pop the pop into a wine glass, pour over the chilled Prosecco and serve! You can also serve this with chilled ginger ale if you prefer not to serve alcohol.

Brides, Grads, Dads, or Teams: Host an Outdoor Movie Night Party

Years ago, I saw an ad for a huge inflatable movie screen in one of those airplane shopping magazines and immediately thought---yippee! Drive-in movie party! This party is perfect for so many occasions. It’s a great casual get together for the big game or an easy birthday party for any age. It’s also perfect for that neighborhood party you’ve been putting off! For the bride and groom, it's a fun alternative to a boring rehearsal dinner or the perfect shower for movie buffs. The menu is classic snack bar food and since it’s all self-serve, all you have to do is set it up and grab a good seat for the movie!

DECORATIONS: Decorating for this party couldn’t have been easier because you can find “movie night” items like popcorn boxes and supplies almost everywhere, including the $1 store or the $1 bin at Target. Better yet, find one-stop shopping for movie night decorations at Oriental Trading Company. 

Line the entrance to the party with colorful patio lights and you can probably score movie posters from a local theatre. Next, you’ll need lawn chairs, quilts, blankets, etc., or simply ask guests to bring their own seating. If you have a large yard or are holding the party at a park, you can even let guests drive up, drive-in style.

ENTERTAINMENT: The big star of our show was the twelve foot Gemmy Airblown Inflatable Movie Screen. Fantastic! It self-inflates in a matter of minutes and presto! You have a movie theater in your yard! It was just as easy to take down as it was to put up and it stores in a tote bag. You do need a projector to show the movie. Check out the length of the movie before you make your choice. I would recommend selecting a movie less than two hours in length and one that will appeal to men and women. If you have a large crowd, you’ll need speakers. If you’re not the technical type or if you’re having a large party, it is worth the money to hire an entertainment company. Not only will they set up everything to show the movie, they can play music to get the party started. Another fun idea? Have them instantly screen photographs of your guests arriving as they walk the red carpet!

FOOD AND DRINKS: Think snack bar favorites for this menu or select your own easy to make, easy to serve foods. We served super deluxe hot dogs with tons of toppings. 

Next, we built a huge candy and snack bar complete with boxed movie candy. You can find it at most discount or dollar stores. Make fresh, hot popcorn; put the popcorn in boxes to make serving easier.

MENU SUGGESTIONS:

MARTIE'S SOUTHERN-STYLE SLIDERS

PIGS IN A BLANKET

DOUBLE DRIZZLE KETTLE CORN

BIG GRILLED CHEESE

SUMMER BERRY CRUSH 

I also mixed two signature cocktails for this party and served them in self-serve dispensers. Mix up your own favorites and name them after the stars in your movie.

SIGNATURE COCKTAIL SUGGESTIONS:

JUICY WATERMELON ECLIPSE      CLASSIC CUBAN MOJITO       ROOT BEER FLOAT MARTINI      BELFAST LEMONADE (IRISH WHISKEY LEMONADE)          STRAWBERRY PEAR SANGRIA     CLASSIC HURRICANE         WATERMELON CRUSH    '57 CHEVY COCKTAIL  CHERRY LIMEADE   JAMAICAN BREEZE COCKTAIL     MINT JULEP       STRAWBERRY BASIL LEMONADE  POMEGRANATE SPIKED SWEET TEA   BASIC LEMONADE AND PINK  LEMONADE      CHERRY LEMONADE    ARNOLD PALMER  PEACH TEA LEMONADE    RASPBERRY LEMONADE

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