Weekly Dinner Party: Beach House Style

This week's dinner party is a bit different than our standard affair. With the whole family in Pacific Grove at the beach, I took on making a spread of cold salads for dinner. There's a lot of tradition here: we used to visit a gourmet deli called Tutti's in Montecito and each pick out a salad to bring home for a big buffet.

Menu

• Black olive pesto pasta salad
• Tabouli salad
• Cold cheese and carved ham
• Classic potato salad
• Green salad with almonds and green beans
• Warm cheese herb rolls with butter and soft cheese

I made all three salads the Friday before we left for the beach. The potato salad is your standard potato, celery, onion affair. 

The black olive pesto is a Tutti's recipe I've been trying to recreate for years. This time, I made the pesto with chopped black olives, pumpkin seeds, red chili flakes, garlic, black pepper, olive oil and parmesan cheese. The chili flakes are a key ingredient to keep it from being bland. 

Finally, a tabouli salad I made for the first time. That lemon dressing combined with fresh herbs is so delicious. 

The final spread had a little something for everyone. 

Perfect no-prep meal for 10 adults and 3 little ones after a long day at the beach.