The Last Barbecue of the Summer

My friends Richard and Sam are my only local friends whose apartment has an actual yard with grass, a pretty spacious one, too. So naturally, they host barbecues all summer long. The last one I went to I was so busy preparing not one but two trays of homemade dumplings–veggie ones and pork–that I ended up getting there late, tired, and in the middle of a hot July, not even hungry. This weekend, I brought to their place the least exotic party food I could think of, and also one of the easiest, deviled eggs.

It would seem that deviled eggs have been attached to a reputation of a sort of fussy, housewife-ish, nibbly thing to admire more than eat, like tea sandwiches. Most people were slightly amused to see it at the barbecue. While it’s probably not the kind of thing to prepare without company, I think they’re pretty filling, and simple to prepare. It’s common to add a splash of paprika as a garnish at the end, but I find that this doesn’t really add any taste, just color and a bit of graininess, so it’s one detail I prefer to leave out. See my complete recipe for them here.

It’s not chocolate, but Sam’s black bean dip dusted with cheese, I call it Black Bean Boat. In the back there’s a peek of her yummy artichoke dip, which she tells me was basically artichoke hearts, mayo, and mozzarella cheese blended together and baked.

To get perspective, not everyone was cowering over the food and taking pictures.

The honorable hosts steal a bite. And get back to work on the bread.

Full and happy, it was the perfect way to kiss the summer goodbye. But I could have done without one or two of those final beers.