Memorial Day and the Fourth of July usually finds me in the pool or somewhere on a beach, but almost always with good food, typically cooked on the grill. Summertime is all about easy cooking and not heating up the oven. Today, I’ll give you some ideas for a fun and festive patriotic menu that’s big on flavor and comes together with little preparation. I’m also sharing my recipe for Grilled Corn on the Cob with Cayenne Herb Butter.
Hamburgers and hot dogs get the Some Kinda Good treatment when topped with all the fixings.
Each year on Memorial Day or Independence Day in my family, we like to keep the menu all-American and celebrate the wonderful foods in season, like vine-ripened tomatoes, sweet summer corn and juicy watermelon. Usually that means grilling hamburgers and hot dogs, slicing up some cold watermelon and keeping dessert simple with a store-bought angel food or pound cake assembled with fresh berries and sweetened whipped cream. Slice cake into small cubes. In a trifle bowl, alternately layer cubed cake with berries and whipped cream. Finish with whipped cream and decorate with red, white and blue sparklers or sprinkles.
Grilled hamburgers and hot dogs with all the fixings make for a festive and fun Fourth of July.
Fire up the grill, put on your red, white and blue and enjoy this menu with family and friends. All of the items on this list can easily be packed into a cooler or picnic basket too. Prepare to sip on an ice-cold glass of sweet tea or lemonade and settle in for the fireworks.
Rotini Pasta Salad is a simple and Some Kinda Good way to enjoy summertime.
Some Kinda Good Patriotic Menu
Grilled Hamburgers and Hot Dogs with toasted buns and all the fixings
Sliced iceburg lettuce
Sliced tomatoes, seasoned with salt and pepper
Raw Sweet Onion, thinly sliced
Ketchup, Mustard, Mayo, Relish
Grilled Corn on the Cob with Cayenne Herb Butter
Rotini Pasta Salad with Fresh Parmesan Cheese and Cherry Tomatoes
Sliced Watermelon
Strawberry-Blueberry Pound Cake Trifle with Fresh Whipped Cream
Some Kinda Good cayenne herb butter compliments sweet summer corn with a little heat.
Grilled Corn on the Cob with Cayenne Herb Butter
1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 Tablespoon Kosher salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon each of chopped basil, parsley and chives
4 ears of Fresh Corn, leaves, silks and tassels removed
Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and stir, pressing seasonings and herbs into the softened butter until well combined. Using clean hands, massage about a 1 to 2 tablespoons of the butter mixture into each ear of corn and grill over medium-high heat until slightly charred for 10 – 15 minutes, rotating as needed.
This article originally appeared in the Statesboro Herald on Sunday, July 1, 2018.
My husband, Kurt, and I enjoy Independence Day on St. Simons Island, 2017.
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Georgia native Rebekah Faulk Lingenfelser is a freelance writer, entertainer and food enthusiast who writes and speaks about her love of good food and the Coastal South. Watch her compete on Food Network Star this summer, Sunday nights at 9 p.m. Rebekah is the longtime Statesboro Herald food columnist and host of SKG-TV on YouTube. A Georgia Southern University alumna, she also attended Savannah Technical College’s Culinary Institute of Savannah. To learn more, connect with Some Kinda Good on social media, or visit RebekahLingenfelser.com.
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