[1] It’s not red, white and blue, but it has extra heat for a “firecracker” punch (both photos © Dietz & Watson).

[2] You can find cheddar cheese already blended with hot chile peppers, like this Jalapeno Cayenne Cheddar from Dietz & Watson.

Ingredients For 4 to 6 Servings

 
Preparation

1. PREHEAT the oven to 375°F, and butter a 2-quart ovenproof casserole dish.

2. BRING a large saucepan of lightly salted water to a boil and toss in the ziti. Boil until just slightly firm (al dente), drain in a colander (do not rinse) and set aside momentarily.

3. MELT the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat, stir in the flour to form a smooth paste (roux), and cook for about 1 minute. Pour in the milk, whisking constantly, and bring to a boil.

5. ADD the ziti to the cheese sauce, stirring gently to coat, and pour into the prepared casserole dish. Sprinkle the top evenly with Parmesan cheese and bake for 10 minutes.

6. REMOVE the casserole from the oven and place under the broiler until bubbly and golden brown. Watch carefully to prevent the top from burning. Sprinkle with paprika, and serve hot.

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*You can substitute pimiento (roasted red peppers) for the peppadew, but the latter is tangier. You can use black pepper instead of white pepper; the difference is that black flecks will show in the recipe. White pepper was created (by removing the spicy black skin of peppercorns) for aesthetic reasons, that are no longer so important in current times. Black pepper delivers more heat.

But what about the pudding family? A chilled dish of pudding is a cool summer dessert.

This group of comfort foods includes banana, butterscotch, chocolate, coffee, salted caramel, vanilla…just name your favorite flavor and you can find a recipe for it.

You can use instant pudding or make it from scratch, which, in our opinion, tastes even better. Here’s a from-scratch pudding recipe, which can be used to make any pudding flavor.

Try this recipe for banana pudding from QVC’s David Venable. It starts with a base of instant vanilla pudding. We tried it both ways; and yes, we preferred our homemade vanilla pudding version.

The difference in labor between from-scratch and instant is not great: Instant pudding mixes simply save you the time of measuring the sugar, cornstarch, vanilla, and salt. Some added stirring is required, but it’s no big deal.

Says David, “This dessert is impossible to mess up. While it always turns out beautiful, it’s really just dumping a bunch of yummy ingredients into a bowl. Make it extra special by serving it in a footed glass bowl.”

You can prepare the pudding up to two days ahead of time.

Banana pudding with vanilla wafers and a twist: chopped nuts (photo © QVC).

We substituted pistachios for the walnuts in Nana’s recipe. If you don’t want nuts, try mini chocolate chips or a salted caramel layer.

We also made fresh whipped cream instead of using commercial whipped topping. Sorry, David: Our Nana would never approve of the shortcuts taken by your Nana.

Ingredients

1. MIX the pudding and milk according to the package directions and then add the vanilla.

2. FOLD in the sour cream, 4 ounces of whipped topping, and 1/4 cup of chopped nuts. Refrigerate until the pudding is set or is needed (you can prepare the recipe in advance up to this point).

3. COMBINE the lemon juice with the banana slices in a medium-size bowl; set aside.

4. ALTERNATE layers of wafers, bananas, pudding, and optional salted caramel, in a large bowl or casserole dish, ending with the pudding.

5. DOLLOP the remaining whipped topping, followed by 6 or 7 crushed wafers and the remaining chopped walnuts. Refrigerate until set. If using fresh whipped cream, wait until serving to add the whipped cream, wafers and nuts.
 
Find more of David Venable’s recipes at QVC.com.

“Pudding” means different things in different cultures, and at different points in history. The creamy, rich dessert that Americans call pudding is more closely related to custard, which is made with eggs and dates to the Middle Ages. Today in the U.K., pudding typically refers to dessert but can be a savory recipe, such as Yorkshire pudding.

The first puddings enjoyed by Greeks and Romans were similar to sausages, and for most of history, puddings were this type of boiled, meat-based dish. It was often stretched with other ingredients: The “pease porridge” in the old English nursery rhyme was a simple boiled pudding of pease meal, a roasted flour made from yellow field peas.

The word “pudding” is believed to derive from the French boudin, meaning a small sausage. In these Medieval European puddings, encased meats similar to sausages were steamed or boiled to set the contents. Blood sausage and haggis are examples that are still “on the menu” in the U.K. These recipes helped to stretch a small amount of meat to feed a family.

By the latter half of the 18th century, traditional English puddings no longer included meat; they were still boiled, but the finished product was cake-like (like plum pudding). Our creamy, modern puddings descend from this tradition of steaming sweet ingredients.

According to Wikipedia, “The distinction between European custard and American pudding became muddled sometime in the 1840s.” Food was plentiful, so traditional boiled puddings were no longer necessary to feed a family.

At the same time Alfred Bird, an English chemist, invented custard powder as an alternative to egg thickeners. Soon after, Americans began using the imported custard powder and other cornstarch derivatives as thickeners for custard-type desserts. Puddings no longer required the addition of fresh eggs to thicken, and this is where modern, eggless American puddings diverged from traditional egg custards.

Instant pudding first appears in the U.S. in 1949. By 1952, Royal Pudding & Pie Fillings, still manufactured by Clabber Girl, advertised: “New homogenized Royal Instant Pudding makes your favorite desserts turn out better than ever before. New Royal Instant Pudding is completely different!”

Our Nana still made pudding from scratch, but the rest is pudding history.
 
 

These delectable chips are a blend of striped beets (chiogga beets), sweet potatoes (with some beet juice concentrate for color) and blue potatoes, which create the patriotic red, white and blue mix. They’re seasoned with a pinch of sea salt.

If you can’t find them locally, you can buy them online. A carton of 12 bags will go quickly, we promise.

The line is certified kosher by KOF-K.

And given the choice between a bottle of wine and a few bags of Terra’s Stripes & Blues, we’re guessing that a majority of people will go for the chips.

JULY 4TH BEER FOR THE CHIPS

Next task: Find an artisan beer to match. Here are some ideas for starters:

Read the full article.

RECIPE: BACON FLAG PIZZA

Ingredients

You’re a grand old pizza! Photo courtesy BevCooks.com.

Prepration

1. ARRANGE the raw bacon slices on a cooling rack. Place the rack on a rimmed baking sheet and then into a cold oven.

2. PREHEAT the oven to 400°F. Set the timer for 20 minutes. When the timer rings, remove the bacon from the oven. Leave the oven on. In the meantime…

3. HEAT the oil in a medium skillet. Add the sliced potatoes and sauté until they brown and become slightly crispy, about 7 minutes. Add a pinch of salt.

4. DRAIN the bacon fat from the baking sheet and flip it over. Lightly grease the underside. Roll the dough onto the sheet. Prebake for 6 minutes.

5. SPOON the Alfredo sauce over the crust. Arrange the potatoes in the upper left hand corner of the pizza. You can overlap them or lay them side by side. Arrange the bacon to the right and under the potatoes, creating stripes.

6. SPRINKLE the cheese between the bacon stripes. If you want, you can create little cheese stars on the potatoes. Bake pizza an additional 6 to 10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted, browned and bubbly.
 
MORE

Check out this crudités American flag.

See the step-by step photos on Tablespoon.com.

Check out more of Bev’s wonderful recipes at BevCooks.com.

You’d be surprised how quickly the 52-ounce bottle disappeared.

As good as it was, we felt the need to try it with fresh mint and fresh lemon juice. (The Bolthouse ingredients include water, watermelon juice concentrate, natural flavor, dragonfruit purée*, mint extract and beta carotene for color.)

While we hurried out to buy more Bolthouse, we also purchased unminted watermelon lemonade from Whole Foods Market (365 Brand, organic and kosher certified) and infused it with fresh mint.

Then, we created the more arduous from-scratch recipe below. (It’s arduous getting all the seeds out of the watermelon, even the “seedless” variety.)

Learn more at Bolthouse.com.
 
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*The label says that the dragonfruit is for color. Most dragonfruit flesh is white with tiny black seeds, but there is a version with pink flesh. Here’s a photo.
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Perhaps the best thing we did with the two “replacement” bottles of watermelon lemonade was play with different ways to use them.

 
What would you do with watermelon lemonade?

Ingredients For 16 Servings

 
†If the watermelon is very sweet, reduce the sugar. You can always add more.
 
Preparation

Our method of preparation is a departure from the original Whole Foods recipe. To get more mint flavor, we infuse the mint in the water before making the beverage.

1. INFUSE mint in water. Reserve 20 sprigs for garnish, then crush the remaining mint and place in a pitcher with the water. Allow to infuse for a few hours or overnight.

2. PURÉE watermelon and lemon juice in blender until smooth, working in batches as necessary.

3. TRANSFER to a large container. Add water and sugar; stir until dissolved.

4. SERVE: Pour over ice in tall glasses. Garnish with mint and thin slices of watermelon and/or lemon, as desired.