School’s out, the weather is getting warmer, and the days are lasting longer and longer, which can only mean one thing: Summer is officially here. And the start of summer is always signified by the glorious celebration of our independence on the Fourth of July. With the holiday coming up quickly, it’s about time you figure out what you’re going to prepare to eat on America’s birthday.
Nowadays, the Fourth of July is as much a food holiday as Thanksgiving – yep, we said it. Sure, it’s not a traditional turkey dinner with all of the fixings, but with the combination of barbeque, corn on the cob, potato salad, and numerous forms of dessert, it’s not hard to see why it’s many people’s favorite holiday.
We’re sure you were planning on preparing a dish or two for the big day; however, we want to help your spread really stand out this year by making it as patriotic as possible. If you’re looking to add an extra dash of American spirit to your holiday dishes this year, check out our five easy red, white, and blue foods to make for your Fourth of July bash.
Patriotic Popcorn
Let’s start things off with more of a snack than a dish, but trust us, this will be a hit throughout the entire day! A super easy and snackable bite you can put together for everyone to share is some patriotic popcorn. And the best part is, you’ll only need three ingredients:
- Popcorn (homemade or store bought)
- Dried blueberries
- Dried cranberries
This very simple snack is a great crunchy and chewy combo with a little salty and sweet, and the color combination will really have your spread ready for the holiday. And since it’s a much lighter dish, you and your guests will be able to snack on it the whole day and even into the night when enjoying fireworks.
Festive Fruit Platter & Charcuterie
To add to the selection of finger foods, if you don’t have the time nor the patience to cook or bake something, fruit platters and charcuterie boards are all the rage right now. They’re an easy, delicious, and aesthetically pleasing way of displaying many appetizer foods in one place, plus, it’s almost effortless to incorporate patriotic colors.
Your patriotic layout of assorted fruits, deli meats, nuts, and much more will guarantee there’s something for everyone to snack on and will definitely be the talk of the party. Spreads like these are always a huge hit (especially when drinks are involved) and will keep you and your guests content until the main entrees are served.
Refreshing Watermelon Feta Salad
If you’re looking to add some freshness to your table, a watermelon feta blueberry salad will surely do the trick and help keep you cool. All you’ll need to make this refreshing dish is:
- Sliced watermelon
- Feta cheese
- Blueberries
- Chopped-up fragrant mint.
When you combine sweet flavors like watermelon and feta cheese with fragrant mint, you’ll get the best of both sweet and savory worlds. You can keep it simple and sprinkle lime juice on top for some additional flavor, or you could even make your own lime and honey dressing. Either way, you’ll have a delicious side dish ready to enjoy in just minutes that also (naturally) contains our country’s colors.
Star-Spangled Chips & Dip
This one is more of a no-brainer; chips and dip make for some of the best appetizers, especially at parties. It’s a snack that everyone can graze, eat, and socialize around, plus it’s also very easy to include the colors red, white, and blue. Some brands will even seasonally put out red and blue chips to make it that much more convenient.
To make it even more patriotic, we have an easy recipe to make your own star-shaped chips that your guests will absolutely love. All you’ll need is:
- Flour tortillas
- A star cookie cutter
- An oven (to make them nice and crispy)
Craft as many stars as you can out of the tortillas, dip them in olive or vegetable oil, then toss them in the oven on a flat pan for about 10 minutes, and that’s it! The star chips will be sure to give the dish a festive look, and while they are toasting, you can get started on whichever dip you decide to compliment them with.
We All Scream for Ice Cream
Okay, now that we’ve covered several snackable dishes, let’s make our last stop at dessert. And what better dessert to make on the warmest holiday than mouth-watering, homemade ice cream? Making ice cream on the Fourth is a tradition that goes back for generations, and for very good reason!
Everyone loves ice cream (especially when it’s hot out) and it’s also quite easy to make. If you don’t have an actual ice cream maker, don’t sweat it! You can make scrumptious ice cream with just a couple of ingredients and your refrigerator or freezer. To make your own homemade ice cream, you'll need:
- Whole milk half and half (or cream)
- Sugar
- Sea salt
- Ice
- Vanilla Extract
- Blueberries, strawberries, cherries, or any festive colored fruit
- Sprinkles (optional, but highly recommended)
- Gallon and quart-sized zip locking bags
In the quart-sized zip locking bag, add the milk, sugar, vanilla, and fruit into the bag. In the gallon-sized bag, add the ice and salt, then place the smaller bag inside and seal tightly. Shake the bag as hard as you can (without popping it open) for five minutes or until it reaches the consistency of ice cream.
Once you’ve shaken it up, take the smaller bag and give it a quick rinse to remove any pieces of salt. Once it’s rinsed off, throw the bag in the freezer to solidify; or if you have a fridge with a flex drawer, set it to the frozen setting for easier access. And ta-dah! You’ve got yourself some festive and tasty ice cream for everyone to indulge in as they watch fireworks light up the night sky.
The Fourth of July is many people’s favorite holiday because of the time of year it takes place, the overall ambiance it creates around family and friends, and of course, the cuisine. As Americans, nothing says we’re prouder to live here than getting together with one another and eating copious amounts of delicious food.
If you plan on putting together something appetizing for your party but think your current appliances might not be up to the task, we offer a