A patriotic cheese ball: our national bird, the bald eagle (photo © Di Bruno Bros | Philadelphia).

O.K., we’re impressed! The cheese professionals at Di Bruno Bros in Philadelphia created this bald eagle cheese ball.

Why not salute our national bird on July 4th? The garlic-herb cheese ball is great with beer and wine.
 
 
RECIPE: GARLIC & HERB CHEESE BALL

Ingredients

1. MAKE the candied pecans. Here’s the recipe. If you have extra, they’re delicious for snacking, to serve with cheese, or to garnish green salads.

2. BLEND the cream cheese, butter, herbs and garlic. Chill in the freezer until and you can form the eagle’s head. You can start with a ball and shape it further.

3. CARVE the bell pepper into a beak shape as shown in the photo. Insert into the head. When ready to serve…

4. PLACE the eagle head on a serving plate, affix the eyes and press the pecans into the base. Surround with crackers or breads.

NOTE: This makes a small eagle head. To make a larger one, double the recipe.
 
 
Bald Eagle Trivia: The bald eagle has been the national bird of the United States since 1782, when it was included with outspread wings in the design of the Great Seal of the United States. Here’s the story.
 
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*Garlic powder yields a more intense flavor than the equivalent amount of granulated garlic. To use granulated garlic as a substitute for garlic powder, double the amount.

How easy is this for patriotic eating on July 4th (photo #1)

 
Or make the recipe below. Thanks to Wisconsin Cheese for the recipe.

We don’t need a holiday to eat berries: They’re one of our favorite low-calorie, high-nutrition foods.

Berries are high in antioxidants, and chock-full of vitamins and minerals.

Here’s why Healthline calls berries “among the healthiest food on earth.”
 
 
JULY 4TH RECIPE: RED, WHITE & BLUE FRUIT SALAD

Ingredients
 
For The Honey-Lime Dressing

 
For The Fruit Salad

 
Preparation

1. MAKE the dressing. Whisk the honey, lime juice and lime zest in a small bowl. Stir in the mint; set aside.

2. MAKE the fruit salad. Cut the cheese into 1/2-inch slices, each about 2-inches wide.

3. CUT the slices with a 1-1/2-inch star cookie cutter, using the handle of a small spoon to press and release the cheese from the cutter at the star points.

4. COMBINE the fruit in a large serving bowl. Top with the cheese stars. Chill, covered, if you’re not planning to eat immediately.

5. DRIZZLE with the dressing just before serving; gently toss the fruit salad to coat. Garnish with mint as desired.
 
 
BERRIES NOT SWEET ENOUGH?

If the berries are not as sweet as you’d like, the honey dressing will give them additional sweetness.

If you’ve bought berries that are really disappointing, toss them with a bit of sugar or non-caloric sweetener right after you add them to the serving bowl.
 
 
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*Unfortunately, pure white cheeses such as feta, goat, mozzarella and queso blanco don’t necessarily slice cleanly with a cookie cutter. They have too much moisture.

[1] Patriotic berries with cheese stars (photo © Wisconsin Cheese).

[2] For lunch, hold the semi-hard cheese stars and scatter the berries around soft, milky burrata (photo © Murray’s Cheese).

[3] A soft or aged goat cheese log, like this boucherondin, is another delicious choice for lunch (photo © Goat Cheeses Of France).

[4] Aged New York white cheddar (photo © Di Bruno Bros | Philadelphia).

[1] A summery tuna and chickpea salad tossed with balsamic vinaigrette, on mixed greens, with a side of garlic bread (both photos © Delallo).

[2] Golden balsamic vinegar (more about it below). You can get it from DeLallo.

You can always count on a can of tuna for a protein-packed salad.

But you can add even more protein by mixing in some chickpeas (a.k.a. ceci bean [Italian], garbanzo [Spanish] and other names*).

This tuna salad recipe from Delallo is Italian-style: an olive oil and balsamic vinaigrette instead of mayonnaise (photo #1).

That means no mayo to spoil in the heat, making the recipe a great patio and picnic food.

Have it for lunch, or as a first course for dinner.

And definitely make some garlic bread, on the grill or under the broiler.

You can also turn a hero-style roll into garlic bread and enjoy the salad as a sandwich. Yum!
 
 
RECIPE: TUNA & CHICKPEA SALAD

While Italian canned tuna is more flavorful than American brands, it is also costlier.

So use whatever you have on hand; and when you’re ready for a splurge, treat yourself to an Italian brand.

Most are so delicious, they can be eaten right on a bed of salad or crostini with no additional ingredients.

Ingredients For 6 Servings

 
Preparation

1. WHISK together olive oil, vinegar, lemon zest, salt and pepper in a large serving bowl.

2. ADD in the chickpeas, peppers, onion, tuna and basil. Toss well to combine.

3. CHILL for at least 1 hour to let the flavors meld. Serve over mixed greens.

Traditional balsamic vinegar is a dark and slightly sweet, syrupy vinegar (here’s more about it).

The authentic balsamics come from the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy, and can be aged for 12 to 150 years. They are pricey, abut worth it to ardent fans.

The older the bottle, the costlier. A 12-year-old bottle on the shelf can be $40 or more; the balsamics over 75 years old can cost hundreds of dollars.

That’s because the older balsamics, which more intense and more syrupy/concentrated, get so by evaporating over time. There is a longer holding cost and less vinegar to sell after years of evaporation.

Not surprisingly, counterfeit balsamics abound. Here’s the scoop on fake balsamic vinegar.

Supermarket balsamics that cost $5-$10 a bottle are simply regular wine vinegar, colored a deep dark brown with caramel. They’re not magnificent like authentic balsamic, but can be fine for salad dressings.
 
The Creation Of Golden Balsamic Vinegar

The one problem with dark balsamic vinegar is that, whether in a dressing or a sauce, it can turn light-colored ingredients—like fish, chicken breasts and white cheeses like feta—brownish.

Thus, golden balsamic vinegar was born. It’s also called white balsamic.

Golden balsamic vinegar originates from the same region of Italy as traditional balsamic vinegar.

Instead of being made like authentic balsamic from a mandated assortment of local grapes—the mandated grapes in traditional balsamic are Ancellotta, Berzemino, Lambrusco, Occhio di Gatta, Sauvignon, Sgavetta and Trebbiano, all grown in the Reggio Emilia region—golden balsamic is made only from Trebbiano grapes.

It is cooked for many hours into a caramelized syrup, which is then aged to create the vinegar.

The result is sweeter and simpler than traditional balsamic, but welcome when you don’t want your light ingredients to take on color—or when you want a naturally sweet vinegar for drizzles, fruit salads and other dishes.
 
 
> CHECK OUT THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF VINEGAR <

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*Additional names for chickpeas include Bengal gram in Tamil, India; chana in Hindi and Urdu, India; Sanagalu in Telegu, India; hummus in Arabic; kabuli in Afghanistan; and Egyptian pea.
 
  

July 4th is the one holiday where you can make everything (except meat) red, white and blue.

Our collection of 60 more July 4th recipes follows, for breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert, snacks, cocktails, and other beverages.

We start with a patriotic cocktail:
 
 
RECIPE: RED, WHITE & BLUE STRIPED (LAYERED) COCKTAIL

Ingredients For 1 Drink

 
Preparation

1. BUILD the drink in a rocks glass. Create the red layer by adding watermelon schnapps and cranberry juice over ice (or no ice, if a shot).

2. CREATE the white layer: Carefully add the lemon juice, simple syrup, and vodka.

3. CREATE the blue layer. Very carefully layer the blue Curaçao to create the color separation, and gently top with soda.

4. GARNISH with fresh watermelon cubes on a cocktail pick.
 
 
INDEPENDENCE DAY BREAKFAST RECIPES

 
INDEPENDENCE DAY SIDE & MAIN DISH RECIPES

 
 
INDEPENDENCE DAY SNACK RECIPES

 
 
INDEPENDENCE DAY DESSERTS

 
 
INDEPENDENCE DAY COCKTAILS

 
 
NON-ALCOHOLIC DRINKS

[1] Layered cocktail or shot. The recipe is at left (photo © Svedka Vodka).

[2] Yogurt breakfast parfait with star-shaped toast. Here’s the recipe from Smuckers (photo © Smucker’s).

[3] Red, white and blue potato salad. Here’s the recipe from U.S. Potato Board (photo © USA Potato Board).

[4] You can fill these mini-sandwiches with anything from PB&J to chicken liver mousse and fig jam. Here’s the recipe (photo © Smucker’s).

[5] Red, white and blue angel food cupcakes. Here’s the recipe (photo © Go Bold With Butter).

[6] Red, White & Blueberry Shortcake. Here’s the recipe (photo © Driscoll’s).