Fourth of July Recipes

This is the perfect day of the year to reflect on the state of our country: so start this holiday by remembering the significance of the day, and by delivering the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag. Most of us learned it in school and other than at the beginning of a ball game, how often do we recite it and think about its meaning?
While standing at attention and facing a U.S.flag, with the right hand over the heart, recite the following words: I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Note: When not in uniform, men should remove any non-religious headdress with their right hand and hold it at the left shoulder, the hand being over the heart. Military in uniform should remain silent, face the flag, and render a salute.
With those words in our heads and our hearts, it’s time to party! And what is the Fourth of July without a barbecue.
Hot dogs and hamburgers are traditional on this day, but if you want to include something different, make it barbecue brisket. This recipe is made in the oven and leaves your pit free to cook other meats and vegetables. 
Cole slaw on the fourth is a given  and maybe a great summer tomato salad and the rest of the meal is cooked on the pit.  Depending on what other meats you choose, if any, the combination of roasting potatoes and seasoned vegetables go with everything. Get your vegetables at one of the local Farmer’s Market’s and you know you are serving your family the freshest produce available.
Everyone craves watermelon on the fourth, so pick out a ripe one and serve it ice cold.
Barbecue Brisket

• 4 to 5 pound beef brisket, trimmed
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoon chili powder
• 2 tablespoon ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Combine all ingredients and rub over the surface if the brisket. Wrap tightly in aluminum foil and place in a roasting pan. Refrigerate overnight allowing seasoning to marinate meat. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Poke a couple of holes in the foil. Cook for 4 hours. Remove from foil and let sit for about 10 minutes before carving. Slice thin.
Roasted Potatoes and Vegetables

• Cube potatoes as well as summer squash, eggplant, zucchini, sweet onion, tomatoes and mushrooms. Toss potatoes and vegetables in olive oil and season with fresh ground pepper, seasoned salt, and granulated garlic. Sprinkle dried rosemary or your favorite herb mixture over all and toss well to coat every piece. Pour into a perforated wok and place on the grill.  It is smart to hold back the tomatoes and mushrooms till the last ten minutes of grilling, as they do not need as much time to cook. Grill woks and grids are available at Sur la Table and Cook’s Warehouse.

Fourth of July Desserts

Desserts should be colorful on the 4th of July and guess what those colors should be? You guessed it, red, white and blue… It is very simple to achieve that goal and the following are two delicious recipes that everyone will love. The first dessert is an ice-cream cookie sandwich. This one is for the kids and the next is a delicious cheese cake with a nutty graham cracker crust and topped with strawberries, raspberries and blueberries.
Chocolate Cookie Ice Cream Sandwich

• 1 pint vanilla ice cream
• 1 pint strawberry ice cream
• 1 pint blueberry ice cream
• 1 box chocolate wafer cookies

The first tip for assembling the ice cream sandwich is to do it quickly. It can be made in stages over a few days, but each time it is out of the freezer, work quickly to avoid melting, and re-cover it tightly with plastic wrap before refreezing. Chocolate wafer cookies are perfect in size and shape for holding the confection together.
Start by softening the pint of strawberry ice cream. Depending on how thick you want the sandwich to be, determines how many tablespoons of ice cream to pile on the cookie: to repeat… work quickly. For a more stable sandwich, top the ice cream with another chocolate wafer. Roll the sides of each layer as you make them in red, white or blue non -perils, stars or jimmies. You can purchase these edible candies at Cake Art in Atlanta. Wrap in plastic and put in the freezer to harden. The next day or when the ice cream has hardened, repeat the process with the vanilla and then blueberry ice creams.

Fourth of July Cheesecake
Cut and place parchment paper in the bottom of a 9 inch spring form pan. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Easy to find the parchment  paper at Bed, Bath and Beyond.
 
Prepare the crust:

• 1 ½ C graham cracker crumbs
• 2 T sugar
• ¼ C finely chopped pecans
• 2 T flour
• 4 T melted butter
• Combine all ingredients and press crumbs into the bottom of the springform, edging the crust up the sides of the pan. Use the heel of your hand.

Filling

• 32 ozs. of cream cheese softened
• 1 ½ C sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 1 t. vanilla extract
• 1 C sour cream ( 8 oz. container)
• Beat the softened cream cheese on medium high for 2 minutes. Add sugar and beat for 4 additional minutes, continually scraping down the sides of the bowl. Incorporate eggs one at a time. Next add vanilla and sour cream. Mixture should be smooth with no lumps.
  Pour into spring form ,place in a baking tray with side, in case springform leaks and bake for 60 minutes until the middle ripples slightly. Remove from oven and let cake cool. Refrigerate for a minimum of 8 hours.

Fruit Topping

• 1 container raspberries
• 1 basket strawberries hulled
• 1 container blueberries
• 2 t blueberry or raspberry preserves
• Remove cake from refrigerator and spread 2 t preserves over top of cake. Do not remove spring form ring. Make your own design with blueberries and strawberries. Idea # 1: Place strawberries to make a five point star and fill middle with either blueberries or strawberries. Idea #2: Create a flag using blueberries as stars and rows of halved strawberries as stripes. Idea #3: Get creative!

Cold Summer Soups

You come home from a work feeling hot and sticky from the humidity and heat of the day and all you can think about is stepping in the shower, putting on some comfortable clothes and having a light cold dinner. What about a delicious cold soup. These recipes are quick and easy and fill the bill.
Visit one of the exciting Farmers Markets in your area of the city to get the freshest vegtables and fruits for these and all your recipes.
Tomato and Avocado Soup

• 1 lb. (about 4 tomatoes) tomatoes, chopped
• ¼ cup red onion, chopped
• ¼ cup seedless cucumber, chopped
• ¼ cup red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 2 T extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 T red wine vinegar
• 1 C water
• ¾ t salt
• ½ t cumin
• 1/8 t cayenne pepper
• 2 avocados, diced (about 2 cups)
• Combine all ingredients except avocado in a large bowl. Mash lightly with a potato masher, stir in 1 cup water, cover, and chill for at least 1 hour or up to 6. Stir in the avocado and serve immediately.

Cantaloupe Soup

• 1 lg., ripe cantaloupe
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 2 tbsp. lime juice
• Fresh mint sprigs
• 2 c. orange juice
• Remove seeds from melon and cube the pulp. Place pulp and cinnamon in the electric blender and puree. Combine orange and lime juices and stir into the puree. Chill and serve in chilled soup bowls or ½ of an avocado. Garnish with mint sprigs.

Fish in Papillote

If you have never cooked a piece of fish in paper, parchment or fata, or a brown bag or even in foil, then you are in for a treat as well as a new taste. This method is easy and its presentation unique.

En papillote is a method of cooking in which the food is put into a folded pouch or parcel and then baked or steamed. A parcel is typically made from folded parchment paper or fata paper, but other material such as a paper bag or aluminum foil can be used. The parcel holds in moisture to steam the food. Fata paper is a clear looking cellophane paper that can hold up to 400 degrees of heat.

The following is an additional delicious recipe for fish en papillote. Both recipes are similar and you can see that whatever combination of seafood you use is acceptable. Be creative and try different combos.

• One 4-ounce fresh red snapper filet, speckled trout, flounder or salmon
• 2 shrimp (21–25 count)(this is a medium size shrimp)
• 2 ounces jumbo lump crab meat
• 1 tomato slice
• large pat of butter
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 2 fresh chives
• 12 leaves of basil

Use a piece of Fata paper 20 X 20 inches, brush with olive oil, and place in a small soup bowl to create a cup. Place a slice of tomato in the bottom of the paper cup. Top it with a small filet of fresh redfish (fold if necessary), the shrimp, and crabmeat. Add the  salt, pepper, and a few fresh chives and chervil leaves. Gather up the edges, twist, and secure them with a twist tie or a piece of string. Bake the paper pouch in a pre-heated 400ºF oven for about 15 minutes or until it’s hot all the way through. Remove the seafood package from the oven and serve it on a very hot plate. This will help the steam stay in the package on the way to the table. Grab a pair of scissors and cut the top off the paper, fold back, and enjoy.
You may also cook this dish in parchment paper  sealing it with  tight folds. If you choose Parchment paper cut the parchment into a large heart.
Fold the parchment in half over the fish. Beginning at the seam, make a small fold and press the crease. Make the next fold by folding the previous fold in half. Continue along the edges creating a continuing seam. When you get to the end, fold the last piece under the fish. Turn the fish over so the presentation side is facing up. Bake in a preheated over at 400 degrees for  fifteen minutes. The parchment  pouch should be puffed up and not leaking and beginning to brown slightly. Serve immediately.
 Start the meal with a cold soup. A cold tomato and avocado, soup which is always easy and quick to make is a great starter.. The fish is the star and  sides are stringbean and artichoke cassarole plus spears of potatoes roasted in the oven with rosemary and olive oil. Your guests go home with smiles on their faces.

Where you can find me

I am currently writing in a few places and plan on posting those articles on this blog. If you miss me in one place, you can find me in another. My current URL's are:
Examiner.com
http://www.examiner.com/x-27290-Buckhead-Cooking-Examiner

Examiner.com
http://www.examiner.com/x-47779-Sandy-Springs-Examiner

Examiner.com
http://www.examiner.com/x-55008-Seafood-Industry-Examiner

AssociatedContent.com
http://www.associatedcontent.com/user/772052/lynda_mahana.html