Healthy Lunch Recipes

I was wondering what would be a great idea for a 4th of July celebration. So I decided to write some tips on having a simple  4th of July celebration. Here are some helpful tips and recipes to help make your 4th of July fun for you and the family.

Hot Dogs or Burgers would be best to cook because you don’t want to slave in the kitchen all day. So making something simple like that will help a lot. You can serve them with some chips and dip, or a Ham Macaroni Salad.

To drink you could have some watermelon juice and in the ice cubes maybe put some chopped blueberries to add  blue color to the drink. Or you could make some strawberry juice.

For dessert (which is the part I enjoy the most) you could make some Red, White and Blue Ice Cream Cups. For example use strawberry, vanilla, and blueberry ice cream and layer them. Leave them in the freezer until the family is ready to eat. Make some Pretzel Sparklers, Star Spangled Shortcake or the Patriotic Trifle Recipe. (Recipes are at the bottom)

At Taste of Home you can find some really great recipes for the 4th of July. They even give you a full list of July 4th Decorating and Entertaining Ideas with recipes and tips.

Here is the link if you want to take a look: July 4th Decorating and Entertaining Ideas

Here are the recipes for the desserts I listed above.

1. Pretzel Sparklers

Servings 12
Prep Time 30 min

Ingredients:
8 ounces white baking chocolate
1 package (10 ounces) pretzel rods
sprinkles or candy stars

Directions:
In a microwave-safe bowl; melt chocolate for about 1 minute; stir. Microwave at additional 10 – 20 second intervals, stirring until smooth.
Dip each pretzel rod about half way into chocolate; allow excess to drip off. Sprinkle with stars. Place on waxed paper to dry.

2. Star Spangled Shortcake

Serving 6
Prep Time 30 min

Ingredients:
1 package (8-1/2 ounces) corn bread/muffin mix
2 cups halved fresh strawberries
2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries, thawed
1/3 cup sugar
5 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
Vanilla ice cream

Directions:
Prepare corn bread batter according to package directions. Fill six greased star-shaped cups or muffin cups two-thirds full. Bake at 350° for 12-15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.
Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine the strawberries and blueberries; sprinkle with sugar and gently toss to coat.
Cool shortcakes for 10 minutes before carefully removing from pan to a wire rack. Drizzle vinegar over berries; toss to coat. Top each shortcake with a scoop of ice cream and berry mixture. Yield: 6 servings.

3. Patriotic Trifle Recipe

Serving 16 – 20
Prep Time 30 min + chilling.

Ingredients:
1 package (3 ounces) berry blue gelatin
1 package (3 ounces) strawberry gelatin
2 cups boiling water
1 cup cold water
2 cups cold whole milk
2 packages (3.4 ounces each) instant vanilla pudding mix
1 carton (8 ounces) frozen whipped topping, thawed, divided
1 pint fresh blueberries
1 quart fresh strawberries, quartered
1 prepared angel food cake (8 to 10 ounces), cut into 1-inch cubes

Directions:
In two small bowls, combine each gelatin flavor with 1 cup boiling water. Stir 1/2 cup cold water into each. Pour each into an ungreased 9-in. square pan. Refrigerate for 1 hour or until set.
In a large bowl, whisk milk and pudding mixes for 2 minutes. Let stand for 2 minutes or until soft-set. Fold in 2 cups whipped topping.
Set aside 1/4 cup blueberries and 1/2 cup strawberries for garnish. Cut the gelatin into 1-in. cubes. In a 3-qt. trifle bowl or serving dish, layer the strawberry gelatin, half of the cake cubes, the remaining blueberries and half of the pudding mixture.
Top with blue gelatin and remaining cake cubes, strawberries and pudding mixture. Garnish with reserved berries and remaining whipped topping. Serve immediately.

You can find more great recipes here: Taste of Home
I really hope you enjoy them and have a great safe 4th of July weekend.

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