Looking to liven up your weekend afternoon? Hosting a luncheon in your backyard is a perfect summer event. Experiment with lighter, less complicated recipes at a less formal dining affair.

Whether you’re entertaining al fresco or getting together with a group of your closest girlfriends, luncheons are a casual cure for culinary monotony. Get creative and experiment with lunch party themes and lunch recipes for food and drinks!

Why Do Lunch?

Entertaining for lunch can have advantages over dinner parties.

• It’s often easier to find a free Saturday or Sunday afternoon among friends. The bigger the guest list, the bigger the fun!
• Lunch parties tend to be more casual and family-friendly. Guests who have kids can enjoy a leisurely meal while their children play together in the backyard.
• Lunch can cost a fraction of what it takes to pull together a dinner party. And often times, it takes a fraction of the time to prepare.

How to Host

Planning a luncheon means keeping things light and fun. Recipes that may be right for a dinner party may not be appropriate lunch recipes.

• Good food choices include sandwiches, salads and a variety of light appetizers, such as dips and homemade chips. Make it a casual buffet lunch by setting up a taco bar or pita and wrap stations. Have guest load them up with their favorite ingredients.
• If you opt for alcohol, keep it light and minimal. Heavy red wines and excessive hard liquors may not be the best choice for a mid-afternoon luncheon. White wine, cold beer or a sweetly spiked punch will add just enough kick to the party. Choose drinks to complement the food.
• Lunch party themes can inspire culinary creativity to the max. Host your luncheon around a specific cuisine, such as Italian, Greek or Pan-Asian. Or, host a party around a theme such as a tropical garden party or a BBQ hoedown.

Lunch Recipes

Put together a menu that matches the theme of your next luncheon.

Just One of the Girls Theme

• First course: Get sweet with a strawberry-kiwi-spinach toss, or go stately with cucumber slices provencal.
• Main dish: For simple elegance, try apricot fish with couscous and with vegetables. Or get creative with pesto and roasted vegetable sandwich loaf.
• Dessert: Indulge in berry cheesecake in chocolate crust, or go light with mini-key lime cupcakes.
• Beverages: Try zesty ginger lemonades or white grape cooler punch.

Grilling Delight Theme

• First course: Dig deep into corn and walnut dip or deviled eggs.
• Main dish: Slather up back ribs with sweet-savory sauce or flavorful Jamaican jerk chicken.
• Dessert: Try grilling a dessert with grilled butter-rum pound cake, or indulge in the campfire goodness of marshmallow-granola brownies.
• Beverages: Chill out with peach margaritas or lemonade tea.

Buffet Lunch Theme

• Appetizers: Spice it up with slow cooker baked beans or a flavorful Mexican party salad.
• Main course: Stack up on turkey-spinach wraps, or cut into a party sandwich loaf.
• Dessert: Slice it up with a tangy fruit pizza, or load up on banana cake.
• Beverages: Dazzle guests with sparkling citrus punch for a crowd or raspberry punch by the bowlful.