Seriously is there no rest for the weary on Labor Day? I mean this is a holiday for all of us in the labor force to take a break from laboring and here I am preparing to spend the day laboring in the kitchen cooking for my beloved friends and family. Hmmm… what is wrong with this picture?

Ok time to step back, reassess this picnic situation and call in reinforcement to make my life in the kitchen trenches easier. To start with this year I am not going to try to out perform Julia Child in meal preparation and table setting. That is to say rather than cooking from scratch – which would leave me tied to the kitchen while all my pampered guests are lounging by the picnic table – this year I am calling in reinforcements. First I am assigning the guys to grill duty. (Seriously, why not let the men take the heavy lifting of meal prep this year? And if I phrase it right, my guy will even think it was his idea! ?) Second, I am going semi home-made with just a couple of quick dishes to fill in the gaps. I am thinking some pre-made garlic bread, watermelon slices and deli-made coleslaw sound great! Of course I still want my guests to be impressed by what I serve them so I do need one wow dish…and nothing says wow like seafood! So I am making Firecracker Shrimp Dippers.

Sounds like I am breaking my minimal time in the kitchen goal, right? Not at all! This dish is so easy. I like to make the sauce a day a head so there is nothing to do but plop the shrimp on a baking sheet, bake for 11 minutes and serve with that delectable slightly spicy sauce. I am talkin’ seriously GOOD! And bonus – popcorn shrimp are a good affordable seafood option when you have a lot of people to serve.

So that is my plan this Labor Day. What is yours? Are you going all out with your Labor Day plans this year or taking it easy?