So, what's everyone doing for thier 4th of July?
We've got a couple friends over early in th day and so far, I've planned:
Burgers and dogs
Pasta salad with salami, cheese, artichokes and broccoli
Asian slaw
Sour cherry crisp (typing this is painful after seeding 2 quarts of those buggers)
Homemade blueberry ice cream ( pints were 2'fers at Safeway last week)



Happy 4th everyone.

We're taking ham & cheddar sandwiches, fruit, lemonade, water, and a giant bag of potato chips to Cunningham Falls State Park where we will go on a nature walk and swim in Hunter's Creek. On the way home we might stop by Chubby's BBQ in Emmittsburg, or just grill some burgers at home. Later on we'll have blueberry shortcake and watch the Takoma Park fireworks from the front yard.

Pack of Brats. The plan is to bribe somebody with a grill for grill space, using the Brats themselves.

Also, I'll be making six pounds of onion brunoise and five pounds of allumette potatoes. Knife practical coming up.

You want to do this to 6 pounds of onions: Brunoise is a method of food preparation in which the food item is first julienned and then turned 90° and diced again, producing cubes of a side length of about 2 mm on each side or less. Common items to be brunoised are leeks and carrots. The brunoise is often used as a garnish in many dishes. A common dish which often uses a brunoise as a garnish is a consommé. A brunoise must be very consistent in size and shape, as it helps to ultimately create a visual effect.

Onions are usually chopped. Hit Wikipedia to discern the differences between brunoise, mirepoix and julienne.

This is my plan:

hot dogs with sweet and sour onions
lamb burgers
deviled eggs
baked beans
macaroni and cheese

I'm also making a small batch of split pea soup with ham while I'm working in the kitchen, but that's for a subsequent meal.

Went out for Okinawan food with local friends and the friend who brought our dogs over from the US. Lots of seaweed and Spam, and a dish of taco soba -- soba noodles, tomatoes, lettuce, white cheese of some kind, and vaguely taco-flavored meat. Not bad, but not nearly as good as the more traditional Okinawan dishes. And, it's rainy season, so no fireworks for us, even though you can buy them at the grocery store.

We entertained pre-emptively last night, but crossed over midnight...does that count?

A selection of Quebecois cheeses. New potatoes roasted in bacon pan drippings. A garlic-and-herb-stuffed pork roast, wrapped in bacon and grilled indirectly. Baby asparagus broiled with cherry tomatoes and cheese shavings. Ribeye steaks. Salad w/ vinaigrette. A Key lime pie from Steve's.

Served with an '01 3er de Valandraud (my first taste of a garagiste wine), and an '01 Sunce Meritage (regrettably, could have stood several more years to knock down the tannins). After dinner, Baccate de pêche de vigne (basically Melacotón from the French side of the Pyrenees), Larios "1866" brandy, '86 Laubade Bas Armagnac, grappa novia di Taurasi, and vieux marc de CdP.

Advil

Going to a friends house for crabs, sausages, beer, wine, potato salad.

Just finished grinding some meat, carmelizing onions, and baking off some chocolate chunk cookies. Off to a friend's with a grill, corn, hamburger buns, and ice cream. The cookies and ice cream will be combined to make ice cream sandwiches to cut down on the utensils and try to keep the kiddies (big and little) from noticing the lack of fireworks due to the drought.

I smoked some pork last night, so tonight we will have smoked pork quesadillas (smoked pork is sprinkled w/ hot pepper vinegar, since I was too lazy to make sauce). Very basic, flour tortillas, 'Mexican' cheese blend, Pace Picante sauce, & whatever hot sauce you choose. We also have cucumber salad (my plants are pumping it out!), cantaloupe (yuck, I hate it, but my son & DH love it), leftover collards (these are also premade, 'cause I'm lazy) Glory canned (please don't banish me!) collards, & cornbread. I'm looking forward to visiting my Mom next week in coastal NC & eating some seafood....

Watched the Palisades Parade this morning and walked down to the Rec Center for free hot dogs and watermelon

This evening:
Deviled eggs
Sazeracs
Charcoal roasted chicken
Barley-corn salad (from today's Post Food section, except I'm using cilantro instead of chives--no got 'em)
Green beans with roasted red pepper and garlic
New potatoes
Peach-black raspberry cobbler

It's raining, so no grilling, so nobody to bribe to let me use their grill. Considered bringing the Brats to the rec center and getting somebody there to grill them, but as this is New York, I all but guarantee there's a law about a food establishment cooking random things people bring in. Even though the school is closed, the rec is open (but out of anything good), but the dorm kitchens are closed: no pan-fried brats, and no knife practice.

I didn't know you had children.

We are cooling our sunbaked heels at home right now eating blueberries and waiting to see if the Takoma fireworks go on. Happy 4th of July!

I know, and this wasn't how I wanted to tell you.
Alright, going to see if the RA would let me into the kitchen so I can do knife practice (Or not, in which case I'll bust into this beer I bought. Beer plus bruinoise equals bleeding).

Honored to be part of Post 3000, too.

Decided to do a simple hickory-smoked chicken.



Added some grilled peaches.




Served with sweet corn and fresh lemonade.

Happy Fourth.

I did a rack of ribs on our Weber grill, low and slow beginning at 1:30 and ending at 6:30. They had been marinated overnight in a garlic-onion-vinegar marinade with bourbon and Worcestershire, then they got a rub of brown sugar and spices. During cooking I added hickory chips and sprayed the ribs with apple cider and bourbon. This was the first time I did ribs at such a low temperature (about 220). They turned out spectacular. A Weber really can be made to cook like a smoker, and I didn't even need to replenish the briquettes. I served the ribs with buttery smashed carrots and potatoes that had been cooked in water and white wine with an herb bouquet. Washing it all down was a 2001 Domaines Ott Bandol. Today I'm detoxing.

I saw two other DR.com members on the way into the Nats game yesterday. It was a great game, especially for someone like myself who is a very occasional attendee. The rest of the day was full of shitty beer and decent burgers/dogs at people's BBQs, as usual.

One of these years I'll get around to having a 4th of july party with good beer and food, but for now I'm letting other people continue to do the work.