September 2014
Often mocked for its mysterious components, the hot dog is an institution even I can’t deny. Mind you, the idea of leathery dogs rolling repeatedly on a lamp-heated conveyor makes me sincrely nauseous (ie: on the verge of dry-heaving while typing), but the idea of a quality link, grilled to perfection, is garden party worthy! Thus, some good friends and I gathered in a friend’s backyard for a Summer Garden Hot Dog Party (plus dessert!).
Friends arrived with plenty of wine, and we put them to work adding the finishing touches to the apps and sides! Bess added mint from Thommy’s garden to this watermelon, black olive and feta salad. Don’t skimp on olive quality here- good olives make all the difference! Meanwhile, other willing workers prepared the prosciutto-wrapped, melon skewers destined for the grill.
Thommy (ie: The Floral King) picked fresh herbs and hibiscus from his garden, which we mixed with various wines, vinegars, peaches and strawberries. We left the fruit to marinade while we ate, and after the hotdog feast, we grilled the fruit in the garden-inspired marinades.
The key to a good hotdog party? In our book, the crucial elements are quality meats (sans weird, unpronounceable preservatives and the like) and corn-syrup-free buns. Yours truly might have forced a grainier bun, but I was willing to respect certain traditions. Being the controlling curators we are though, we divided the table into three hot dog flavor profiles. Being the drama queens/kweens we are, we theatrically demonstrated the assembly of each style:
The Picnic Dog
A Thommy Conroy creation
Potato Salad
Salt
(I like to make my potato salad with Greek Yogurt, but the Floral King insists the classic store-bought potato salad is the key to this combo)
The Bánh Mì Dog
Sriracha + Mayo (organic versions of both preferably)
Cucumber Slices
Daikon Carrot Slaw (Recipe coming soon)
Jalapeño Pepper Slices
Cilantro
Ginger Sauce or the Asian Condiment of your choice (ex: Hoisin)
The Garden Dog
Blue Cheese
Garden Fresh Tomato
Garden Fresh Arugula
(hot dog link not shown but definitely included)
Hot dogs and a fancy, excessive dessert spread go hand-in-hand in this garden world. Layers of almond, vanilla cake paired deliciously with the varieties of stewed fruits, homemade whipped cream and a special frozen coffee dessert (recipe coming soon).
Another round of Romanian wine finished the night (check out those floral reflections! That bottle looks like a magical place for bees!)!
Though fall and pumpkin flavors will quickly be upon us, I hope you have the chance to sneak in a hot dog party of your own, maybe even over a campfire!
Happy Hot Dogging!
-Quelcy
Mouth watering!
Have you ever tried the Sonoran hot dog in Tucson, AZ. Delicious! You need to give it a try sometime.
Wow!
Just beautiful, both the photos and the food!
Mmm when’s the next party!
Such high quality stunning photos, thank you for sharing! Also I LOVE Banh Mi!!! 🙂 Congrats on being Freshly Pressed! x
~ I also like banh mi but I cannot make it taste like the one in Vietnam. I guess I’m just a terrible cook at that! I think I like it because of the coriander. I also put coriander in soups and salads, which gives the food such an Asian taste. Before I forget, please allow me to congratulate you on being FP! Cheers! 😉 – Bliss, The Lurker’s List
Is it as hot as its name ? 🙂
Love your gathering, love your food, love it all! Ironically I’ve had a real craving for hot dogs recently that I’m going to give into tonight…I hope they taste as great as all of these sound!
Thanks so much! Happy Hot Doggin’ ! 😉
Reblogged this on Laura Michaela Banse and commented:
What a fun idea!!
Banh Mi – Yum!
ohh, I too want to have a hot dog party after reading your post!
🙂
“garden-inspired marinades” It’s very inspiring. Hope that our garden are edible like yours 🙂
That hot do looks amazing! I am definitely going to try that! thanks for sharing!
My pleasure. I hope you enjoy it!
Such a great article. I love how you remind us to be part of the EXPERIENCE OF EATING as oppose to the more common notion of shoving food in our faces 🙂
Wow! That’s unusual hotdog sandwich. Looks way better to any hotdog sandwich in the world.
Thanks Peter. I hope you get to eat one. 😉
This is great! I never knew hot dogs could be so fancy!!!
Looks tasty! I want one now!
What a feast! Sans the wine for me (allergic to alcohols). Mouthwatering, especially when you consider your reader has an empty stomach.
Please keep writing and photographing the stages of preparation. My next trip to a supermarket that has quality hot dogs, and on grill they go. NO buns (other allergy) but fortunately I am not allergic to meat itself.
You are so inspiring! Please check my blog when you get a chance…
This is amazing, thank you for this post. For any Aussies out there reading this, these options would also go great with Sausages 🙂
I can’t stand store dogs either, when football season is on my Husband and Father will sometimes beg me to cook up hot dogs for them to have whilst watching the game. They love my hot dogs, I don’t do anything special really – perhaps the secret is in not sitting them in tepid water for 8 hours hahaha.
Yum. You’ve made me reconsider the use of the good ‘ol hot dog. And the pics all look so delicious!
I love bahn mi. I’ll have to try this with a chicken or turkey hot dog (I don’t eat beef). I recently had a bulgogi-flavored chicken hot dog that might go well with this.
A bulgogi-flavored chicken hot dog sounds perfect for this! I might have to track that down.
I found it at Trader Joe’s. Hopefully, they have them at locations near you.
That dinner looks YUMMY:)!!!!!:):):):)
I LOVE BANH MI ! missing vietnam now, nice photos 🙂
Reblogged this on Bienvenidos al Circo… and commented:
mejor que hogs, algo casero y bien hecho..
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Nice one:)
Interesting read. I’ve been wanting to fire up my grill for several weeks now. Inspiration!
Reblogged this on It's Just Food, Bitch and commented:
Stumbled across this blog. Amazing!
Will totally try this recipe this weekend!
OMG. This is just SO yes!!! Gorgeous AND delish. Love your blog.
The Man Who Ate STL.
Thanks so much!