Dr Pepper Pick Your Pepper Summer ~ Indoor Picnic Ideas

While summer is all about enjoying the outdoors, here in southern Illinois / most of the Midwest, the heat and humidity sometimes keep us indoors. I am not incredibly sensitive to the heat, but if you’re having guests over, not everyone is going to enjoy it or even be able to tolerate temps in the 90s, so you could always consider hosting an indoor picnic!

The theme/inspiration for this picnic was a bountiful French picnic that features ice cold Dr Pepper Pick Your Pepper theme bottles (a personal fave), and lots of delicious snacks. Nothing super heavy as far as food, just smaller bites that you and your guests can feast on throughout the evening.

Keep reading to learn more about how you can win fun and festive prizes for Summer.

Each 20 oz. Dr Pepper bottle features over 40 artistic and inspiring labels that contain a Snapchat code on them. To unlock this fun filter, simply open Snapchat, take a photo of the Snapchat logo / code on the side of the bottle, then a little notification will appear, giving you access to the filter. Below, two of my favorite Snapchat filters were outdoors themed.

YOU CAN WIN!

Callout that the fun, unique Pick Your Pepper packaging and how it’s fun, individualized, and designed by millennials, for millennials. Available in stores starting 6/15/18.

Call out the prize reward and drive to  http://bit.ly/2pts8Qo

When you buy Dr Pepper 6/15-8/15 this summer, you can upload your reciept at http://bit.ly/2pts8Qo  to get the prize featured in my blog here and/or other prizes like:

Spend $5 get 5 bottles = Dr Pepper Retro Specs

Spend $10 get 10 bottles = Dr Pepper Copper Lined Mug

Spend $20 get 20 bottles = Dr Pepper Bluetooth Speakers

Spend $30 get 30 bottles = Dr Pepper Pool Float

CHECK OUT THE RETRO SPECS, BELOW…

Scan the Snapchat code on any Dr Pepper Pick Your Pepper to reveal a unique filter you can use! I then save the image and share it wherever you want! Below, two of my favorites!

My boyfriend Bobby and I love being outdoors, so these filters are super cute. He adores fishing, so the Snapchat filter, shown above that says, “Keepin’ It Reel” is perfect for him!

While this particular picnic I hosted for this post was indoors, I loved bringing traditional outdoor picnic elements into the evening with galvanized metal trays to hold food, easy to eat bites of a huge assortment of foods, and even cozy floor pillows, rugs and lightweight picnic blankets. I still love incorporating rustic elements into my events no matter where I host!

There are so many benefits to hosting this picnic indoors - Think of it, no bugs, no heat, and all the food and drinks one can possibly snack on throughout the evening without having to leave the elevated comforts of home. It’s such a fun way to enjoy time with friends or have a date night!

TO SET A COZY SCENE:

I love the idea of reminiscing about days past, where we would put pillows and blankets onto the floor and have a sleepover. Now that I’m older, we don’t really do that anymore, so it’s fun and nostalgic to reminisce and more or less make a soft place on the floor to settle in for the evening! It could be super fun to set this up in the living room, where everything is centrally located. Or, even on a porch!

I also added upscale touches like French-inspired textiles in stripes and plaids of white and blue. I packed some of the 20 oz. bottles of Dr Pepper into a metal “picnic basket”, which was a great way to carry the bottles plus lots of other necessities.

FOR THE FOOD:

I am always drawn to bountiful plates of fruits and other bite sized foods, so this was the perfect opportunity to try my hand at not one but three snack trays!

For one platter, I used a large, round galvanized tray with handles to hold everything. I then placed a white charger plate in there, plus a marble cutting board to hold the meats and cheeses (this was the least messy way to display them), then placed items like croissants, red and green grapes, strawberries, and more.

For another tray, I placed mini chocolate chips, blueberries, and blackberries. For the last tray, I placed a bit of herbed goat cheese dip, sliced baguettes, and crackers to dip into the goat cheese.

I was so happy with how upscale everything looked!

TO SERVE YOUR GUESTS:

I used lightweight linens, gold plates, and gold plastic utensils (that almost looked real!!), which added a bit of shimmer and glitz to the picnic. The gold and white looked really lovely.

It would definitely be fun to host a similar picnic outdoors if you live somewhere the weather is nice all the time! I love this particular color scheme, and I know those party platters would really look great at so many of your summer events.

Connect with Dr Pepper across social media!

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PIN IT FOR LATER...

Grilled Flank Steak Fajita Nachos Recipe ~ Outdoor Grilling Inspiration

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #AuthenticSalsaStyle#CollectiveBias

A delicious summer grilling recipe, filled with authentic flavor and fresh ingredients! These BBQ Flank Steak Fajita Nachos are the perfect meal to serve at a party, during outdoor grilling season! Read on to learn more about this wonderful recipe and some cute ideas of how to decorate for your next outdoor grilling party. 

 I just love the colors of this outdoor party table setup. I used mainly blues and whites in my design (dishes, napkins, utensils, table covering fabric, etc). I just let the bright, beautiful food shine with a more subtle color scheme.

Also, I love the idea of using large glass jars with lids to hold chips (found in the kitchen section at Walmart). It's eye-catching, and keeps chips fresh while your serving guests. Use small scoops or tongs for guests to serve themselves

By offering self-serve topping, guests can use as many or as few ingredients as they like. If someone is vegetarian or even vegan, they can opt out of the steak, and just use lots of veggies!

Even More Recipe Inspirations, Here: AuthenticSalsaStyle.com.

And, if you are looking for more beef-based recipes, look no further: BeefItsWhatsForDinner.com.

MARINADE:

Olive Oil, Lemon Juice, Taco Seasoning (use half here), Chopped Fresh Onions & Garlic, Pinch of Salt.

FOR THE MEAL:

- HERDEZ® Salsa Casera

- 1 lb. Flank Steak (per 2 people)

- 1 bell pepper each in green, red, orange, and yellow

- 1 purple onion

- Tortilla Chips

- Shredded Cheddar Cheese (We shredded a block of extra sharp cheddar)

- Jalapeños

- Taco Seasoning (use the other half of the package here)

- Limes and/or Lime Juice

- Sour Cream

- Cilantro 

- Grill and Skillet


1.) Prepare the marinade in a 9x9 baking pan (I used my brownie pan) by chopping 1/4 of the onion + 1-2 heads of garlic, and mix it with all of the other marinade ingredients. Stir well.

2.) Add steak, cover with plastic wrap or foil, and place in the fridge to and marinade for at least 1-2 hours.

3.) Preheat grill to high heat after steak is done marinading.

4.) Cut up all 4 bell peppers, and most of the onion, and set aside. Get out a large skillet, and heat a small amount of olive oil. Wait until the oil starts to thin a bit, and add your onions and rest of the taco seasoning. Cook until slightly browned, and then add your peppers. Let these simmer on medium low heat, and let's grill some steak! 

5.) While your peppers are cooking, bring steak out to the grill on a tray of some sort, with tongs and a spatula. Place the marinated steam right onto the grill. After about 4-5 minutes, if you want those pretty grill marks, rotate the steak 90 degrees, and grill for another 1-2 minutes. Flip the steak over and grill for another 2-3 minutes. This timing left a bit of pink but not much - it was perfect! Take it off the grill and let's make some nachos!

6.) Turn heat off of the peppers and onions when they're cooked, and slice steak into bite-sizes slices or pieces. 

7.) To make your nachos - on a plate, add: chips, cheese, corn, sour cream, grilled steak, cilantro, and top with HERDEZ® Salsa Casera. This has been my go-to nachos recipe, and everyone always loves it! 

I went to Walmart to pick up some of my ingredients and party supplies - you can find the HERDEZ® Salsa Casera and the Beef at Walmart, as well as the jars that I used for holding those tortilla chips. Get recipe inspiration and beef nutrition information at “Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner".

HERDEZ® provides #AuthenticSalsaStyle and it's oh, so good! Thank you so much for checking out my latest recipe, I hope you are inspired by it!! What is your favorite meal to make on the grill? What do you usually grill when you have a crowd? Let me now in the comments, below.