Green iced tea with berries. Photo by Eugene
Bochkarev | Dreamstime.

To quench thirsts over July 4th weekend, brew up a special batch of red, white and blue iced tea.

Use red and blue berries and a white fruit to garnish:

White fruits can include:

 
If you don’t want to add a white fruit, default to a white straw!

ICED TEA TIPS

 
ICED TEA FUN

Take our iced tea trivia quiz.

Learn all about tea in our Gourmet Tea Section.

Talk tea like a pro: See our Tea Glossary.

Tart and terrific hibiscus iced tea. For a fourth of July drink, substitute red, white and blue fruits for the lime. Photo courtesy Republic Of Tea.

Funfetti for a fun July 4th.Photo by Elvira
Kalviste | THE NIBBLE.

If you’re planning July 4th festivities, start with breakfast. Hungry Jack has a patriotic pancake mix for Independence Day: Funfetti Stars & Stripes Pancake Mix.

There are neither stars nor stripes in the mix, but teeny red and blue candy bits* that provide specks of color. They’re too small to add significant flavor or texture to the pancakes, but they are, as the product name says, fun. And the pancakes are delicious.

If you want to make more of an impact, you can make special July 4th pancakes with:

 
HOW MANY TYPES OF PANAKES HAVE YOU
HAD?

Check out all the different types of pancakes in our Pancake & Waffle Glossary.

*Ingredients include sugar, cornstarch, vegetable oil, confectioner’s glaze, canuba wax and color.

As American as blueberry and cherry pie.
Photo courtesy Centerville Pie Company.

If you’re planning for July 4th festivities, here’s a fun food idea from Centerville Pie Company of Centerville, Massachusetts: an American flag pie.

Prepare your favorite blueberry and/or cherry pie recipe. The Centerville Pie bakers fill the pie crust 3/4 with cherry filling, and use blueberry filling in the upper left corner. Then, they simply cut the top crust in strips to resemble the stripes in the flag.

You can also use whipped cream to create “stars” on the upper left corner.

Centerville Pie Company is happy to ship a pie to you, and pie lovers will really enjoy looking at all of the delicious pies on the website.

FIND MORE OF OUR FAVORITE PIES IN OUR PIE & PASTRY SECTION.

The Atlanta Dog: just peachy! Photo courtesy
Applegate.

If you own a grill, chances are you’ll be using it this weekend to make hot dogs and other favorites. For a gourmet hot dog experience, Applegate Organic and Natural Meats—whose hot dogs count among our favorites—has provided some very special recipes.

Here are 13 recipes representing cities nationwide.

ATLANTA DOG: Vidalia Onion & Peach Relish

It’s impossible to think of Georgia without imagining orchards full of peach trees and fields of sweet onions. In the ATL, they come together into one delicious hot dog topping. Pickled jalapeños bring the tang and heat to a fresh, juicy relish On the side: sweet tea, of course. Recipe.

BOISE DOG: Baked Potato “Bun” With Bacon, Sour Cream & Chives

At first glance, this specialty of The City Of Trees might look like a regular hot dog set-up. But look again, and you’ll see a fluffy baked potato standing in for the bun: a fitting homage to the Idaho potato! Recipe.

BOSTON DOG: Baked Beans, Crumbled Bacon & Chopped Onions

There‘s a double hit of bacon on this dog from Beantown: both cooked with the beans and crumbled on top. Recipe.

CINCINNATI Dog: Cincinnati Chili, Cheddar Cheese & Onions

The Queen City is keen on chili dogs. Cincinnati-style chili—mildly spiced and very meaty—makes an ideal hot dog topper. Keep some in the freezer and pull it out any time you need a fix. Recipe.

COLUMBIA, S.C. OOG: Pimiento Cheese, Yellow Mustard & Diced Onions

In The Capital of Southern Hospitality, pimiento cheese is a Southern classic, and its sharp creaminess turns out to be a natural with hot dogs. Recipe.

DENVER DOG: Green Chile, Red Onions, Jalapeños & Sour Cream

The Mile-High City deserves a hot dog with miles of flavor. A touch of sour cream tames the heat of roasted green chile sauce, chopped onions, and jalapeños. Recipe.

HONOLULU DOG: Pineapple Relish, Lemon-Garlic Mayo & Starfruit

Hot dog stands in Hawaii offer a range of tropical toppings—think relishes made from coconut, mango or papaya. This recipe, inspired by The Big pineapple, pairs a snappy pineapple relish with a cool lemony mayo and slices of starfruit. Aloha! Recipe.

LOS ANGELES DOG: Red Cabbage & Scallion Slaw, Kimchi & Sesame Mayo

The City of Angels is a city of many cultures and cuisines. Based on the now-famous Kogi Dog from the original Kogi food truck in L.A., this hot dog explodes with flavors and textures: fiery, tangy, creamy, crisp, nutty. A squirt of sriracha sauce completes the Asian theme. Recipe.

The Boise Dog: adapting a baked potato to a hot dog. Photo courtesy Applegate.

NEW ORLEANS DOG: Muffuletta Olive Salad

The Big Easy is known for its flavorful food. A favorite local condiment—finely chopped salad of olives, pickled vegetables, garlic and capers—makes a vinegary counterpoint to meaty dogs. Recipe.

NEW YORK CITY DOG: New York City: Sauerkraut & Spicy Mustard

The Big Apple chooses a classic combination of crisp, vinegary kraut and spicy brown mustard. It’s so simple, yet so good. Recipe.

PHILADELPHIA DOG: Pepper Hash & Spicy Mustard

Pepper hash, a traditional accompaniment to hot dogs in the City of Brotherly Love, is a sweet, vinegary slaw. Sometimes the hot dogs are served with a smashed fish and potato cake, too, but you can simply finish your dog with a drizzle of spicy mustard. Recipe.

SAN FRANCISCO DOG: Carrot, Cucumber & Radish Salad With Herb Mayonnaise

Inspired by the incredible produce available in the Bay Area, this colorful salad topping is refreshing and beautiful. The green herb-flecked mayo adds a touch of richness to this Fog City dog. Recipe.

TAMPA DOG: Cuban-Style With Ham, Swiss & Pickles

There’s no guava on this hot dog from The Big Guava. Instead, locals adapt the traditional Cuban sandwich combo of ham, Swiss and pickles to the hot dog. Recipe.

COMING UP NEXT

Hopefully, Applegate will post the recipes to these yummy dogs, which you can see in a video on the website: Baltimore, Chicago, Des Moines, Kennebunkport, Las Vegas, Memphis, Pittsburgh, Portland, San Antonio, Santa Fe and Seattle.

Enjoy the holiday weekend!

Bacon cole slaw with Wisconsin blue cheese. Photo courtesy EatWisconsinCheese.com.

If you’re looking for a way to change up your summer cole slaw and potato salad, we recommend bacon (or vegetarian bacon). Or, you can substitute the vegetarian, kosher Baconnaise, a bacon-flavored mayonnaise we love. Real bacon or faux flavor, the smokiness adds a level of deliciousness.

We presented a variation of this “red, white and blue” cole slaw recipe for Independence Day, but we didn’t add the bacon.

Yesterday we found ourselves with a package of Niman Ranch bacon and this recipe from EatWisconsinCheese.com. We made it and declared it a hit.

BACON COLE SLAW

Ingredients

For Slaw Dressing

 
Preparation

1. DRESSING. Combine all ingredients in a jar; cap and shake well. Refrigerate for an hour or longer to let the flavors blend.

2. COMBINE. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl; mix well.

3. CHILL. Refrigerate for at least an hour to let the flavors blend.

Variations

NIMAN RANCH BACON, NITRITES & OTHER THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW

Niman Ranch bacon costs more, but its money well spent. All Niman Ranch meats support small, family-run, sustainably-managed American farms. The meats have much better flavor and texture than factory-farmed meat. (If you haven’t seen The Meatrix, it will open your eyes).

The other difference is the cure—a topic filled with misinformation and controversy about nitrates and nitrites. The issues are presented below.

Niman Ranch bacon has a noticeably lower moisture content than supermarket brands, and thus shrinks a bit less, with less curling, as it cooks.

Another observation: The bacon is thicker and browns more slowly, so you can make it well done without over-crisping.

Niman Ranch Bacon. Photo by Evan Dempsey | THE NIBBLE.

 
What Is Uncured Bacon?

Conventional bacon gets a “quick cure”: The pork belly is injected with brine plus the chemical form of sodium nitrate (which converts to sodium nitrite in the processing). Sodium nitrite extends the shelf life of the meat, prevents bacterial growth and provides the familiar pink or red color.

Uncured bacon typically uses a nitrate/nitrite-free cure with celery juice, salt and a lactic acid starter culture.

Then why is it called “uncured?”

Under federal labeling laws, if a meat product is not cured using the chemical form of sodium nitrate, it must be labeled uncured, whether or not it is preserved by another preservation technique.

Add this to the mountains of confusing government legislation. It’s easy for most consumers to think that uncured meat is less preserved, and thus more dangerous (the danger is the potential growth of the bacterium Clostridium botulinum, which can cause botulism).

But there’s more:

Celery is a natural source of sodium nitrate, so nitrites go into the meat anyway. But by adding nitrite-rich celery juice to the meat instead of actual chemicals, manufacturers legally to claim “no added nitrates.”

SODIUM NITRITE DOESN’T CAUSE CANCER

Here’s the lowdown on this issue:

Several decades ago, an animal study that got significant media attention concluded that sodium nitrite was a carcinogen. Large amounts of the chemical were fed to the animals.

But follow-up studies—which did not get hyped by the media—did not show the correlation. According to MeatSafety.org:

Numerous scientific panels have evaluated sodium nitrite safety and the conclusions have essentially been the same: sodium nitrite is not only safe, it’s an essential public health tool because it has a proven track record of preventing botulism. The National Toxicology Program, an agency within the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, conducted a multi-year study to evaluate sodium nitrite’s safety. The study found that sodium nitrite was safe at the levels used.

According to the FDA, sodium nitrite does not become toxic or increase risk of cancer in doses up to 10 mg of sodium nitrite per pound of body weight. This translates to an intake of 19 pounds of cured meat for a 150-pound individual.

So: Buy Niman Ranch bacon because it’s sustainable and tastes better—not because of “no added nitrates or nitrites.”

Whenever we’re asked to a July 4th party, we always bring our Red, White & Blue Potato Salad. It’s special on Independence Day and potato salad occasion.

While we generally enjoy sharing, we keep our exact recipe a secret. We worked for years to get the dressing right!

But the United States Potato Board sent us a substitute red, white and blue potato salad recipe. It mixes three different potato types with onions, bell peppers and ham in a balsamic vinaigrette. This fancy potato salad is a world away from a potato-mayonnaise mix, a delight for potato salad fans.

The recipe was created by Jill Melton, MS, RD, former senior food editor of Cooking Light and director of communications for Food Insight. We had bacon on hand and substituted it for the ham: delicious!

RED, WHITE & BLUE POTATO SALAD RECIPE

Ingredients

A potato salad for any festive occasion. Photo courtesy U.S. Potato Board.

 
Preparation

1. Cut the potatoes into 1-1/2 inch pieces (do not peel). Steam for 25 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

2. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a medium skillet. Add ham, walnuts, and garlic. Sauté 10 minutes. Add sherry vinegar, stir well.

3. In a large bowl, toss ham mixture with potatoes, additional 2 tablespoons of oil, red pepper, green onions, salt and pepper. Serve warm or cold with grilled steak, burgers, chicken or fish.

 
*Creamer potatoes are potatoes that are harvested while young, tender and small—often as little as one inch in diameter. The flesh contains a lower level of starch, which makes themsuitable for boiling. Creamer potatoes are typically Yukon Gold or red potatoes, which are called gold creamers or red creamers, respectively.
 
Find more delicious potato recipes from the U.S. Potato Board.

Yukon Gold potatoes, a favorite of chefs and foodies. Photo courtesy BonniePlants.com.

POTATO TRIVIA

According to the USDA Economic Research Service, potatoes are the largest vegetable crop in the U.S., with an annual production of 41.3 billion pounds. More than one million acres of potatoes planted annually—the equivalent of filling the entire state of Rhode Island with potato plants.

The U.S. Per Capita Potato Consumption is 117 pounds a year. Here’s the breakdown of what we eat, based on the 2010 forecast:

Top 10 Potato Producing States
(in Billion Pounds)†

Potatoes are grown in all 50 states, but most of those 41.3 billion pounds are grown in:
1. Idaho 11.5
2. Washington 9.3
3. Wisconsin 2.9
4. Colorado 2.3
5. North Dakota 2.3
6. Minnesota 2.0
7. Oregon 1.9
8. Michigan 1.5
9. California 1.5
10. Maine 1.5

†2008 Figures from USDA/NASS.

Make star-spangled drinks with star-shaped ice. Photo courtesy Promo-Wholesale.com.

It’s the little touches that make guests smile. Like star-shaped ice in their July 4th drinks.

Make each soft drink or cocktail more special with star-shaped ice, made in a silicon mold.

No time to find ice cube trays?

Head to the market for carambola, star fruit, to garnish the rims of glasses.

Then, find some special cocktail recipes.

Here are options in addition to the Star Spangled Banner and Patriot cocktail recipes we published last week:

JULY 4TH DRINK RECIPES

 
COCKTAIL SPARKLERS

Serve glasses of red, white or blue Prosecco or other sparkling wine:

The red sparkler has a base of cranberry juice, the white is plain and the blue uses blueberry juice. Add two inches of juice to a Champagne flute and top with the sparkling wine. Don’t stir: It breaks up the bubbles.

You can make a non-alcoholic version with with lemon-lime soda.
 

Find more cocktail recipes.

There’s plenty of time to create a star-spangled menu for July 4th. Here are recipes for foods and drinks:

BREAKFAST

 
LUNCH & DINNER

 
SNACKS

Red, white and blue cookie pizza. Photo courtesy California Strawberry Commission. Get the recipe.

 
DESSERTS

 
If you have a favorite July 4th recipe, please share!

A star-spangled cocktail. Photo courtesy Congress Hall.

We serve Bloody Marys, Margaritas and Martinis year-round. But we love occasions that merit special cocktails.

So we were more than pleased when this red, white and blue “Star Spangled Banner” cocktail recipe arrived from Congress Hall, a 200-year-old classic American resort on the ocean in Cape May, New Jersey (so charming, we wanted to make a reservation—see the photo gallery).

STAR SPANGLED BANNER COCKTAIL RECIPE FOR JULY 4TH

This drink delivers delightful flavor from the two orange liqueurs and fresh raspberries.

Ingredients Per Drink

Preparation

1. Moisten the rim of a Martini glass and dip it a half inch deep in sugar (use a shallow bowl for the sugar).

2. Combine the muddled raspberries with the orange liqueur. Add to the bottom of the glass.

3. Combine the vodka and blue Curaçao. Blue Curaçaos vary in color. If you want a darker blue, add a scant drop of blue food color (Curaçao is colored with food color. Cointreau, Grand Marnier and other high-end orange spirits are based on Cognac or other aged spirit, which yields a natural rusty orange color.)

4. Shake with ice and strain into glass. Serve.

ANOTHER PATRIOTIC COCKTAIL
 
For a red, white and blue effect, you can also use whipped cream and blueberries atop a red drink. You don’t have to sweeten the whipped cream; unsweetened, it provides a more sophisticated contrast atop a sweet drink.

THE PATRIOT COCKTAIL

Adapted from a Congress Hall recipe.

Ingredients Per Drink

 
Preparation

1. Shake vodka and juice with ice in a cocktail shaker. Pour over ice cubes in a collins glass.

Whipped cream and blueberries turn any sweet red cocktail into a patriotic one. Photo courtesy Congress Hall.

2. Top with a small amount of whipped cream. Garnish with blueberries and serve with a straw.

Find more of our favorite cocktail recipes.

Party line party favors for July 4th. Photo
courtesy Choclatique.

If your crowd spends a preponderance of time discussing politics, serve some of these clever chocolates for July 4th.

Made by the creative L.A. chocolatier Choclatique, white chocolate shells are filled with chocolate ganache and topped with colored white chocolate donkey and elephant medallions in party colors.

They are sold in two-piece party favors (one elephant, one donkey per box in a 12-box package) and boxes of 8, 15 and 30 pieces, all ranging from $18.00 to $55.00.

And of course, given party politics, each size is available in all-donkey or all-elephant.

Head to Choclatique.com and search for “Capitol Collection.”

Find more of our favorite chocolates.