The last day of summer has finally come upon us, and with it comes the start of a new category on 20something cupcakes. Welcome to Complete Menus: my attempt at making stylish dinner party menus more accessible, less stressful, and – hopefully – more fun.

{images via coco + kelley}

Throwing dinner parties can be intimidating – they can appear to be a crazy amount of work, and who wants to be busy in the kitchen slaving over a hot stove, while all of your besties are out mingling and enjoying tasty cocktails without you? You may also be scared away by the idea of trying to get everything out on time and at once – anyone who’s ever cooked a meal before is aware of the great challenge of timing. Maybe you feel like you couldn’t put a menu together to save your life. And how exactly do you know what can be prepared in advance, and what must be done the night of? I may not have all the answers, but my hope is that showing you what I do and how I think about things will help take some of the guesswork out of the equation, and show you that dinner parties shouldn’t be difficult – they should be fun, and they should be fabulous. If you’re not enjoying yourself, what’s the point?

I’m also sure that many of you have your own fabulous ideas and tricks you’ve learned along the way – I’d love to hear them! One of my favorite things about cooking and food is that it’s a constant learning process – no matter what level you’re at, there’s always more to learn.

This particular menu was planned for two very good friends of ours, K + B. They are very frequent guests at our house for dinner, and though B is a very picky eater, I actually enjoy that aspect of the planning. I like the challenge; it’s fun to think of what kind of salad I will serve to the person who doesn’t like vegetables, or what type of dessert will work for the person who doesn’t like chocolate. Yes, that’s right – I enjoy it. I also enjoy spending *far* too much time making sure all of the items on the menu complement one another perfectly, and occasionally even making up names like, “Late Summer Farmstand Menu” that no one will ever see. Well, guess what? My silly little menu names will finally have a home.

Cheers to that.

Blackberry Thyme Margaritas

A signature cocktail is a must for me: It’s the perfect way to welcome your guests and let them know it’s going to be a great night. These particular cocktails may have been what spawned the whole idea for my “late summer” menu. To me, they seemed so perfect with the theme – the blackberries brought the summer-factor, and the thyme gave them the rustic quality that seemed to fit in so well with the approach of autumn.

Timing:  I made these the day of in the pitcher. My always-gracious guests brought the tequila, so when they arrived I just poured it right in and poured away.

Spiced Cocktail Nuts

If I’m doing a lot of food as far as everything else goes, I like to keep the appetizers light. Since I decided to do a soup, salad, and corn muffins to start, I only did one appetizer – and a simple one, at that. This is my new favorite go-to recipe for a quick and easy appetizer. Just keep mixed nuts on hand (along with the appropriate spices), and you can pull this out of your back pocket anytime.

Timing:  You can do these nuts completely ahead of time. I did them the morning of, but you could do also them the day before. Be warned – they’re highly addicting. Make them too far in advance and you may be in danger of eating them all.

Watermelon Gazpacho

For whatever reason, I felt an urge to make gazpacho. Perhaps because it was the end of the season, and gazpacho feels like a recipe that belongs in the summer. I also wanted to keep my starters light as I knew the chicken and potatoes, and corn muffins, would be a bit heavier. This was the perfect gazpacho recipe because it combined the salty, the sweet, and the spicy. The basil oil on top also make it look glamorous.

Timing:  Can be done ahead of time. I made it the morning of – you could also do it the day before.

Corn Muffins

Normally I wouldn’t choose to make corn muffins in addition to all of this food, especially with the heavy potatoes that come with the chicken. This was a special case, as these corn muffins were on my agenda for Project Pastry Queen, and I think they really added to the summer-themed menu. They would also be great with any type of BBQ menu, or better yet – alongside your favorite chili for football season.

Timing:  To eliminate having yet another item to make around start-time, I used half the batter in the morning, and saved half for the evening. This way, we could enjoy fresh corn muffins for breakfast and when my guests arrived, I could drop the batter into the muffin tin and they could enjoy fresh, hot muffins out of the oven.

Arugula + Peach Salad with Creamy Chive Vinaigrette

This salad was specially chosen for my favorite picky eater, B. B doesn’t like tomatoes, and he doesn’t like many vegetables, though he will eat a salad. When I found out B loves him some peaches, I was sold on this salad. They loved it so much that K asked for the recipe and made it later that same week!

Timing:  You can make the dressing ahead of time, and throw everything together when you’re ready to eat.

Roast Chicken + Bacon Rosemary Potatoes

This roast chicken will change your life. It changed mine, at least. I’ve made it twice in the last month or so since I’ve discovered it, and I can’t wait to make it again. A roast chicken is the perfect thing to serve at a dinner party, as you can let it do it’s thing while you hang with your company. And this roast chicken is even more fabulous thanks to the addition of bacon (which makes everything better – duh), and the most perfect lemon-rosemary potatoes you’ve ever had.

Timing:  About 20 minutes before my guests’ arrival, I cooked the potatoes. You can plan on eating about an hour-and-a-half after arrival this way, which I think is the perfect amount of time for plenty of drinks, appetizers, and starters. You will have to put the potatoes in the pan about halfway through, which is no big deal.

Caramelized Shallots

And we can’t forget about the shallots. They are also slightly life-changing, for me at least. I discovered the recipe on my beloved Smitten Kitchen, and I knew they would be perfect. These were an especially great choice to serve to my guest who is very particular about his veggies – as in, he hates most of them! These can’t be hated by anyone, I’m quite sure of it. Everyone loves caramelized onions, and using the same process on shallots just takes it to another level. I will also say that another side at this point is unnecessary – if you wanted to stop with the chicken and potatoes, you would be fine doing so.

Timing:  Start these about 30-40 minutes from when you’d like to eat.

Assorted Individual Fruit Crostatas: Peaches, Plums, and Berries

I had planned on serving these lovely individual fruit crostatas, inspired by a recipe from my Pastry Queen cookbook – but our guests somehow managed to pass on dessert, if you can believe it! In their defense, there was *a lot* of food, as I’m sure you can tell from this menu. I loved this idea for a dinner party, as you can lay out a variety of fruits, and let your guests choose which combination they’d like. I plan on making these again soon, and in the meantime, you can check out this similar recipe on one of my favorite blogs, Annie’s Eats.

Timing: You would make the dough before, and prep any fruits as necessary – berries can be left whole, larger fruits should be cut up. After dinner, everyone can choose their ingredients, you can quickly assemble – it’s easy, I promise – and throw them in the oven. Just make sure to have the vanilla ice cream waiting.

What do YOU think, lovelies? Do you like this new type of post? Any comments/suggestions/thoughts? I’d love to know!