An Alfresco Taste of Tuscany Party

Any excuse to get outside and enjoy beautiful weather is perfectly FINE with me. 

So great weather, good food, and a few of my favorite people is a winning combination too good to pass up!

When Bertolli, the Italian food brand, asked me to host a tasting party featuring some of their sauces, I wasted no time in inviting my friends to get together. All of us have busy schedules so its not often that we can all get together just to eat and have a good time in each other's company - and that's exactly what we did.

We held the party outdoors. It actually rained the morning of as Danny and I ran errands, and I prayed the weather would clear up by afternoon. Thankfully, it did! 

Having the opportunity to gather outside helped add to the party's Tuscany theme.

Tuscany, Italy is known for its mild climate and cool sea breezes of the coast. While we are no where near a coast here in Atlanta, the temperature was about mid-70s and there was a nice breeze. 

We had a quaint family-style set up at one of the picnic tables under the pavilion. Next to each place setting we included the party favors Bertolli sent for our guests. Each of our guests received these adorable mini planters that included sweet basil seeds, a soil wafer, and an eco pot. 

Our tasting party included three dishes - Creamy Basil Potatoes (an Italian Potato Salad); Balsamic BBQ Chicken; and a Naked Spaghetti Pasta.  

Each dish featured a different Bertolli sauce. 

The potatoes featured Bertolli's Classic Garlic Alfredo Sauce. We used fresh basil in the sauce. However, Bertolli also has a new Creamy Basil Alfredo Sauce that may be worth trying. 

The Naked Spaghetti (shown in the middle to back ground of the above picture)  had mushrooms and red onions in it and we trimmed it with fresh thyme. (I say "we" but that was totally Danny's presentation skills at work). We had Bertolli's Classic Tomato and Basil sauce to pair with that, (shown in the picture below).

The Balsamic BBQ chicken was actually our take on Bertolli's Balsamic-Glazed BBQ Ribs recipe (in general, Danny and I don't eat pork so we made a chicken dish instead). We used Bertolli's Riserva Marinara sauce in this dish. 

The crew digging in!

My turn!

The food was a hit! With adults and kid alike ;-) 

When you imagine traveling to Tuscany, Italy, you imagine having the opportunity to eat great Italian food with fresh ingredients. Bertolli is able to capture a little piece of that experience in their sauces. There is no weird metallic or plastic after taste and you can recognize all the listed ingredients. It's just sauce as it should be. 

We had a great time and everyone really appreciated the fresh flavors of the sauces. 

Shout out to Danny for being the ultimate hosting partner. He cooked with me, set the table, and took the pictures. (He rocks!) 

Shoutout to our family too (the couples who came out) because when you're with us at our family table -

"You're part of the family!" 

in my best Marlon Brando voice. (My momsie would be proud!) 

Cheers to good food and the friends that we pick to be family!

-CF 

Disclosure: Bertolli sponsored this post and sent me a party pack with coupons and party favors in exchange for my review. All opinions expressed are my own and are not influenced in any way as per my guidelines for the blog.