Easy Weekend Hosting: Sunday Cookout with the Neighbors

How to Host This Cookout

Step 1: Make your game plan. Read through the make-ahead timeline and start the day before. Doing a little early means a lot less scrambling on Sunday.

Step 2: Set up your space. Arrange the buffet table before guests arrive. Put cold dishes on ice. Set out serving spoons, napkins, and plates.

Step 3: Bring out the food in waves. Start with sausage balls as an appetizer so guests have something to snack on while the main dishes come together.

Step 4: Let it run itself. Refill dishes when they get low, keep the drink station stocked, then step away. This is your cookout, too.

Donya’s Best Tips for a Backyard Cookout

Cook the chicken ahead. Baked BBQ Chicken can be made the morning of and kept warm. You skip the stress of timing everything at once.

Use a cooler for cold dishes. Coleslaw and creamy salads go into a cooler or ice bath on the table. They stay safe and taste better cold.

Set up a self-serve station. Lay everything out buffet-style so guests serve themselves. You stay out of the kitchen and in the yard where you belong.

Let guests bring something. Drinks, extra chips, a bag of ice. Give people something easy to contribute. They feel part of it, and your load gets lighter.

Double the dessert. At a cookout, dessert goes fast. Make two trays of banana pudding trifle or set out Cherry Delight alongside it.

Things I Love for a Cookout Table

The table does not have to be fancy. It just has to feel like you. Nothing matches perfectly, and that is exactly the point. It makes the table feel personal.

I use a bold printed tablecloth that wipes clean easily. Big wooden salad bowls and ceramic serving dishes look generous and welcoming. Mason jars are my go-to for drinks.

For flowers, I grab whatever is growing in the yard or pick up a simple bunch of zinnias or sunflowers at the market. A few stems in a mason jar are all you need.

Change It Up: Seasonal Twists and Easy Swaps

•Rain plan. Move the whole spread inside. Set up the buffet on the kitchen counter or dining table. The food travels perfectly.

•Kid-friendly version. Swap the sausage balls for Ranch Fire Crackers and add a plain pasta salad. Keep a cooler of juice boxes low enough for the kids.

•Vegetarian option. Pull the chicken and add a big pot of baked beans and grilled corn. The coleslaw, cornbread salad, and potato salad are already vegetarian.

•4th of July version. Add a red, white, and blue fruit tray alongside the trifle. Use a flag tablecloth and paper stars for simple festive decor.

•Potluck version. Assign each guest a dish from the menu. You handle the main and dessert. The whole menu travels well.