Jess Thomson Kate Baldwin Christy Nordstrom

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There’s nothing better than a cookout. But I’m not talking about grilling, the summer alternative to fast food that becomes habitual by September. I mean the real thing: a full-on cookout, the season’s best food cooked over a real fire, with real flames, far from the backyard.

September may not be the most relaxing month, but plan for a cookout, and you’ll be guaranteed at least one good, slow evening in front of a fire.

Tips for the Ultimate Cookout
If you’re planning to make the whole menu at a cookout spot away from home (which we strongly recommend), here are a few suggestions.

Get Organized
Because cookouts usually mean transporting a few kitchen items to the outdoor location, get everything in order inside your own kitchen in advance. Do ahead anything that requires cutting or mixing. For the cookout menu on these pages, you’ll want to do the following at home and transport things to your cookout in a cooler:

• Cut the bread.
• Make the white bean spread.
• Marinate the pork.
• Make the salsa.
• Marinate the zucchini and make the dressing.
• Cut and marinate the potatoes and green beans, and whisk the potato salad dressing together with the corn and shallots.

Plan Your Attack
Cooking an entire meal on a grilling grate over a fire means you’ll need to plan which foods go on the grill, in what order, before the fire dies. For this menu, grill the bread first, then the potato salad ingredients. (If you need to, here’s the time to add wood or charcoal to the fire.) Mix the potato salad while the pork cooks, and grill the zucchini in the hot center of the grill while the pork finishes cooking in a cooler spot. Cook the peaches over the dying embers.

The Ultimate September Cookout
Menu for six:

Grilled Garlic Toast with Basil–White Bean Spread
Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Tomato–Olive Salsa
Grilled Zucchini–Feta Salad
Warm Grilled Potato Salad with Green Beans and Corn
Grilled Peaches with Fromage Blanc, Fireweed Honey and Cinnamon

Click here to find these and other great recipes.