It was time for our monthly dinner & games! I’d been eyeing a soup recipe that I’d seen floating around in several variations for a while now, and the dessert was time for the last warm weather of the season. For our game, we pulled out one we hadn’t played recently, timed to coincide with International Dog Day!

At a Glance…

Dinner

There’s a bagged salad at our local grocery stores called ‘green goddess’ that Jon and I absolutely love, so when I saw this recipe, I knew I had to try it. It’s got some interesting things going on, including roasted cashews and lots and lots of tahini. A little too much thick tahini for my taste, but everyone else loved it. I forgot the radishes (Freudian slip? Perhaps), and went a bit light on the cilantro for a friend’s sake. The avocado, cucumber, and edamame made this a great combo for me!

Lasagna Soup

Lasagna soup just sounds delightful, doesn’t it? The particular version I chose said it made 4 servings a batch and I had 6 coming over, so I doubled it, but it still didn’t seem like enough, so we last minute made a third batch, lol. We added some vegan burger crumbles and handfuls of spinach, and did cashew cream. I personally adored this, but I think everyone else wasn’t quite as enthused as I was…unclear.

Strawberry Pie

Years ago we had a friend who brought strawberry pie to a few game nights and it left a memorable and positive impression on me. This was finally the day I made my own! I had a whole fiasco finding gluten free graham crackers. I was at the store and knew I had some at home, but wasn’t sure how much, so I was going to get some more but of course they were out. So I grabbed some gf oreos instead, just in case. I measured out what I think was the right amount, but it didn’t seem like enough. So I added some crushed up oreos around the edges haha. The pie itself was super easy to throw together, and in the not quite fully frozen state I served it in, was very reminiscent of the strawberry shortcake strawberries I used to have as a kid. I love that it’s just strawberries, sugar, and some cornstarch. I would have appreciated a little more clarity in the amount of strawberries and type of cutting in the recipe, but it turned out great regardless and was enjoyed by all!

Dog Park

Dog Park is a very pleasant game. I’m a huge fan of the theme, components, and art. In it, you are walking various dogs around the park, trying to get the resources needed to walk more dogs and get the right breeds for end game scoring. The game play is pretty simple, with a path mechanism similar to Tokaido or Parks. One of the interesting things comes in the drafting phase of getting your dogs, and making sure you have enough resources to walk them. The Tricks expansion adds a lot more to think about and gives it a nice crunch. If you’re a fan of pleasant games and dogs, check this one out!

Want to buy these games? Check out your friendly local game store (FLGS), Amazon [here], or get a first-order discount at Board Game bliss [here].