Summertime is a great time to celebrate simple fresh food with great friends. Even better is pairing it with a birthday or anniversary celebration and adding a simple, festive decorative element. Here's a simple menu for entertaining 30 guests with flip flop flair.

Flip Flop Decorations:

Choose flip flops in all colors and sizes at any Dollar Store for $1 per pair. Celebrate her 50^th birthday with 50 flip flops decoratively placed in the center of the party. They'll really stand out if you pin them to the sides of your tent or attach them to fishing net and hang behind the food tables or at the entrance. Make flip flop sugar cookies and prominently display them on each table. Finish it off with a banner using the simple flip flop design. Even the kids can make it since it's basically a distorted oval with the plastic strips drawn on. Use bright disposable table cloths and serving items or add even more fun with this cute set from www.buycostumes.com.

Bonus:

• Use permanent markers and write the guest of honor' name on the back of the flip flops and then send each guest home with a pair.
• At the end of the night, let the guests find pairs of flip flops to take home with them. Especially fun if kids are at the party too.

Summer Picnic Menu:

There's a great assortment here with something for everyone. And the real beauty is that no one is stuck at the grill because there is plenty of meat between the ham and the smoked turkey breast. The cheddar cheese scones are perfect with the salad and make great little sandwiches with the ham. Several of the items can be made the day before so the party day is a celebration for all. Since the broccoli slaw and the turkey salad both have a dairy based dressing, we chose sides with oil and vinegar based sauces for the other two.

Half Glazed Baked Ham

Smoked Turkey and Strawberry Salad Sensation

Cheddar Cheese Scones

Broccoli Slaw

Green Bean and Tomato Salad

Simply Satisfying Potato Salad

Flip Flop Cookies

2 large Watermelons

Recommended Schedule:

Day Before:

• Make and Chill the Turkey Salad Dressing
• Make and Chill the Broccoli Slaw Dressing
• Make and Decorate Flip Flop Sugar Cookies
• Make and Chill the Potato Salad

Morning of Party:

• Decorate with Flip Flops
• Make the Scones
• Cut up the turkey and strawberries

An Hour Before the Party:

• Make all the salads
• Keep the two dairy based salads chilled
• Cut up the watermelon

20 Minutes Before The Meal:

• Reheat the scones
• Take the ham out of the fridge

Broccoli Slaw Recipe

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 0 minutes

Serves: about 30

Broccoli Slaw Recipe Ingredients

• 3 bags broccoli slaw (easiest!) or 3 large bunches of broccoli (chopped using tree top parts)
• 1 package pre-cooked bacon, microwaved for 30 seconds and crumbled
• 1 ½ cups sunflower seeds
• 1 cup raisins

Combine ingredients and add sauce.

Broccoli Slaw Sauce Recipe Ingredients

• 2 cups mayonnaise
• ½ cup sugar
• 4 T. vinegar

Combine in a lidded plastic container and shake.

Chill until serving. If serving outside, be sure to place in a bowl filled with ice and stir occasionally since it contains mayonnaise.

Flip Flop Sugar Cookies Recipe

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutesServes: about 30

Sugar Cookies Ingredients

• 4 ½ cups flour
• 2 sticks butter
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups sugar
• ½ cup milk
• ½ t. vanilla
• 4 t. baking powder

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375. Butter multiple baking sheets. Combine dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder). Thoroughly mix together the butter and sugar. Add eggs, milk and vanilla to butter-sugar mixture. Slowly add dry ingredients in while beating well.

Important Step - Wrap the dough and chill in fridge for at least an hour before baking.

After cooling, roll out dough to ½ inch thick and cut with flip flop or (Easter) egg shaped cookie cutter. (www.cookiecutter.com is one source) Place cookies onto buttered baking sheets. Combine scraps and repeat until all the dough is made into cookies. Bake 8-10 minutes.

Once cooled, decorate the flip flops using bright colored icing. The thicker end is the top of the foot and the smaller side is the heal. Decorate by starting the icing at the big toe spot and making one side go to the base of the big toe and the other side go toward the pinky side. (Check out your own flip flops for a quick and easy model).

For the rest of these homemade easy recipes and one really great ham, visit pams-hams.com.