It was a pleasant and warm, midsummer night. Luckily the showers earlier in the day decided not to return when 16 Dames and guests met up at Ravinia Festival on Sunday, Aug. 9, for the 15th annual Ravinia Potluck Picnic to see and hear Diana Krall. As usual, Dames brought their favorite dishes, including two Greek Meze dips from Polly Peters, Sharon Olson’s Mediterranean Cheese Platter, Mary Kay Gill’s Roast Chicken with Za’tar Spices, Phaedra Ruffalo’s (Sharon’s friend) Grilled Chicken and Vegetable Kabobs and five wonderful salads including Mary Hess’s Pasta Salad with Grilled Vegetables.

For the first time in a record-setting 15 years, Maria Concannon couldn’t make the event because of a big wedding in Mexico. We missed her famous guacamole so I did my best to recreate the dish, paired with my summery margaritas. Krall, a jazz pianist and singer didn’t miss a beat with her famously smooth vocals and cover songs of favorite rock n’ roll artists from her new CD, “Wallflower.” We took turns taking the short walk to the pavilion to see her in person, returning for more food, wine and a lovely Peach Pie from Mary McMahon and a Plum Cake from Laura Parsons, a perspective member, for dessert. All in all, we made it another memorable Ravinia night.