I recently had the honor of hosting a Rock Star Happy Hour in our back yard for the touring band – Kat Myers and The Buzzards.  They played at Beryls’s in Denver and we got to see their show and it was fun, and energetic, and amazing.  If you are looking for new music, I highly recommend getting their EP.  (See their website for info.)  We had a cousin party and it was lovely and fun.  But I only took pictures of food (and bee keepers), because I am a terrible person who only likes to brag my cooking skillz instead of commemorating special moments with Rock Stars who visit my abode.

I made zucchini rollups (see recipe below), served beet hummus (from Trader Joes), and a lentil/tomato/garlic/basil mix, crackers, cut veggies, and cherries (with the Cherry Chomper) for appetizers.  For dinner I made 4 pizzas: Pepperoni x 2, pesto/cheese, and pesto/cheese/veggie.  Cookies  for dessert.

And what did we have for entertainment?  A bee swarm.  You can’t beat a bee swarm for exciting entertainment.  But that’s a story for another day.

Since posting the zucchini rollups on instagram, I have gotten a lot of requests for the recipe, so I am going to share.

This recipe is from The Thug Kitchen: Party Grub For Social Motherf*ckers  ** cookbook.  I have adapted it a bit, but I highly recommend this cookbook.  I have a bunch of pages bookmarked for breakfast, parties, and picnics this summer.  Just know if you have a sensitive ear, the language is colorful.  But there is nothing in there that your kids haven’t heard from that one kid in their second grade class.

Zucchini Rollups – Adapted from The Thug Kitchen: Party Grub For Social Motherf*ckers  **

3 medium zucchini
Creamy Pesto Dip – see below
2 carrots cut into 2 inch matchsticks
1 Cucumber cut into 2 inch matchsticks
1 red bell pepper cut into 2 inch matchsticks
2 green onions cut into thin strips, 2 inches long

When you cut your matchsticks, keep in mind the height of the zucchini strips.  You want the veggies to stick out a little but not be awkward to eat.

Use a vegetable peeler to cut the zucchini into long planks. I used my carrot peeler, and found that the thinner they were, the easier they were to roll.

Spread the pesto dip down the length of the zucchini, this will hold it together when you roll it up.  At one end, add some of each veggie, with one end lined up with the zucchini and the rest sticking out the top.  Roll it up.  Use a toothpick to secure if you don’t trust your roll.  Repeat until you run out of zucchini strips.

These are best within 2 hours, but you can pre-make the dip, and cut up everything but the  zucchini ahead of time.

Creamy Pesto Dip

1 can white beans, or great northern beans
Homemade Pesto or store-bought pesto. * I assume you already have an amazing pesto recipe, or else you need to buy it.  Or maybe you need mine?
1/2 a lemon

This is where I veered the most from the recipe in the book.  I drained and rinsed the beans and then put them in the food processor with about 1/4 cup of pesto and a squeeze from half a lemon.  (If you are my mom and you don’t have a food processor, you can mash it together with a fork or mix it in the blender.)  Blend until you get a spreadable consistency that you like.

Caveat to this recipe – It was so pretty and fancy and delish.  I served the leftover dip, and veggies on a platter.  All the dip and veggies were eaten, but I had zucchini rollups leftover.  Maybe they were too pretty to eat?  So feel free to make the dip and just serve with cut veggies if you aren’t having special guests.  Don’t deprive yourself.  But your zucchini rollups will be the hit of your next party.

Play a little Kat Myers and the Buzzards in the background to get the full effect.

**Links to books are affiliate links.