A "Food on a Stick" Themed Meal

Our family celebrated a belated Father's Day this past weekend, and I thought it would be fun to share what we ate with you guys, as the meal turned out to have an interesting theme!

When the time came for menu planning between my sisters and my mom, we first decided on barbecued kabobs as the main course, partly because I was giving my dad some new fancy skewers that we wanted to try out!  Then my sister Genevieve suggested our favourite appetizer from last summer, watermelon and feta bites, and once we realized that both dishes are served on a stick, for some reason we decided to make a whole meal with that theme!

We had so much fun coming up with ideas for each course, and the end result was fantastic.  It helps that everyone in my family is an amazing cook!   Here's what we ate, in case you're interested in planning something similar yourself!

Appetizer: Watermelon, Feta, and Mint Bites

These were probably the biggest hit of the whole meal!  If you're a food blogger or follow food blogs often, you've probably seen the watermelon, feta, and mint combination a thousand times already.  Well there's a reason for that, because the ingredients work so well together and are perfect for summer!

Gen was in charge of making these, and all she had to do was cut out cubes of watermelon, top each cube with a piece of fresh mint and a piece of feta (you want the feta to be smaller than the watermelon).  Then drizzle with reduced balsamic vinegar, stick a toothpick through each bite, and serve!  So easy and definitely a crowd-pleaser - if you haven't tried a version of this appetizer before, I highly recommend giving it a try!

Main Course: Veggie/Cheese, Beef, and Chicken Kabobs

For the main course, my mom grilled up three types of skewers so there would be something to please everyone!  They all had the same vegetables (bell peppers, onions, tomato, and pineapple) and a teriyaki glaze, but some had beef, others had chicken (both organic), and for the vegetarians, we chose to use a grilling cheese (that was it's actual name, I dont know what specific type of cheese it was!) instead of tofu.  Notice the new skewers I mentioned on the right - they worked so well and even include a slider to push everything off the skewer when  you're ready to eat!  You can buy them from quirky.com if you're interested in getting some for yourself.

Here they are ready to eat .. the cheese got a bit burnt but was still good!

Side: Grilled Mini Red, White, and Blue Potatoes

For our side dish, we bought a couple bags of mini potatoes, which contained red, white, and blue potatoes (perhaps more appropriate for a fourth of July party!), and grilled them along with the kabobs.  Seasoned with salt, pepper, and a little olive oil, they were not only adorable but tasty too!

Salad: Caprese Skewers

For our "salad", Gen made these caprese skewers with tomato, mozzarella, and basil.  We bought some really creamy buffalo mozzarella balls and marinated them in olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and Italian seasoning for about 15 minutes.  Then, you just skewer them with grape tomatoes and fresh basil, and season them with salt and pepper.  Fresh, summery, and another crowd-pleaser!

Here's a picture of my plate before I devoured it (and went back for seconds)!

Dessert: Chocolate Fondue with Fruit

We had a few ideas for dessert on a stick, including my older sister's great idea of strawberry shortcake on a skewer, but once my mom thought of making fondue, we all agreed it would be the perfect finish to the meal!  It's fun and interactive, and you can eat as much or as little as you want, so you don't end up feeling stuffed at the end of the meal.  And of course, you eat it on a stick!

We all had a great night and loved every part of the meal, especially our dad, who got to sit back and relax without worrying about cooking or cleaning for a change!  And did I mention that we bought almost every element of the meal at the market that same day?  Knowing that the ingredients were all fresh and many of them were local made the meal that much better!

The only part of the meal that I can take full credit for is a pre-dinner frozen treat that I'm saving for my next post, so be sure to come back in a couple of days to find out what it was!