Fun July Fourth Foods
Easy to "make and take" side dishes and desserts for the holiday.
Jun 24, 2009
Whether hosting a 4th of July BBQ or going to a picnic, these dish ideas will be a welcomed compliment to the traditional main foods often served, like hamburgers, hot dogs, grilled chicken or ribs. Plus they're easy to prepare and travel well. For added fun, include small flash cards with revolutionary history tidbits alongside these dishes.
Side Dishes
- Yankee Doodle Noodle Salad is a twist on a traditional recipe. Using star-shaped pasta, toss cooked pasta with red beans, pinto beans, red onion slices and mix with Italian dressing (or a homemade vinaigrette). Top with crumbled bleu cheese or parmesan.
- Patriotic Cole Slaw is a delightful mixture of bacon bits, cole slaw, cherry tomatoes, crumbled bleu cheese and cole slaw dressing.
- Revoluntionary Potatoe Salad is a colorful way to dish up a barbeque favorite. Using blue potatoes rather than russet, simply boil the potatoes in salted water, drain, cool then dice. Add some diced radishes, diced red onion, diced celery and about 1/4 cup of crumbled blue cheese. Coat well with mayonnaise.
- True-Blue Grilled Potato Wedges are a healthy alternative to French fries. Slice several blue potatoes, keeping the skin on, and boil for 7 minutes in salted water until fork tender. Drain and cool, then drizzle lightly with extra virgin olive oil. Season with oregano, thyme, garlic salt and pepper, or just a good shake of Lawry's. Grill for 4 minutes each sided until crispy.
- Star-Spangled Chicken Salad Sandwiches are a great alternative to burgers and easy to manage for smaller hands. Just use a star-shaped cookie cutter on the bread, discarding the crust. Then fill with a favorite chicken salad mixture (or tuna).
Desserts & Treats
In addition to the standard July 4th desserts such as American flag cake, patriotic-themed cupcakes and colorful trifles, fourth it up with these entertaining options.
- Paul Revere Pretzels...one if by white, two if by blue. Dip pretzel sticks into melted white chocolate, then coat with red and blue star sprinkles. Alternatively, add blue food coloring to the whtie chocolate, dip and cover with red and white sprinkles.
- 1776 Shortcake Delights are pint sized shortcake cups, filled with chopped strawberries and blueberries, finished off with a dash of whipped cream.
- Fife & Drum Parfait isn't the typical parfait. Layer homemade yogurt, blueberries then strawberries and repeat the process until the glass is full (the drum). For the fife, include a small kabob stick that has strawberries, marshmallows and blueberries.
- Frozen Francis S Key-ookie Sandwiches are quick to make. Whip in strawberries and blueberries to semi-frozen vanilla ice cream or yogurt. Then sandwich the mixture between graham crackers or oatmeal cookies. Freeze before serving.
- Red, White and Blue Popcorn Balls are a colorful medley. Melt 1/4 cup of margarine with 1 bag of mini marshmallows. Stir in 4 tbs of red or blue gelatin until the gelatin has dissovled. Pour the mixture over 6 cups of popped popcorn. Once cool, lightly grease hands and shape into small balls.
And don't forget to keep hydrated and cool in the hot summer weather. Have an assortment of homemade fruit popsicles and punches available. In what other colors but red, white and blue! (Cherry/strawberry, white grape, blueberry/grape respectively.)
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