july 4th favorites
Discover more from the smitten kitchen digest
Monday, June 27, 2022
Good afternoon!
“Open-thigh” lemonade! Cucumber memory. Watermelon choosing advice from an expert. Grocery shopping in Germany. (TikTok)
A frozen pizza renaissance (Taste)
July 4th has always been one of my favorite holidays to cook for. We usually try to squeeze too many people on our terrace, too many ribs in the oven, and generally make an embarrassment of slaw and watermelon-based beverages. Save no dishes to wash at the end of the fireworks, I wouldn’t want it any other way. It’s an anchor in a summer that’s already moving too fast and frenzied. Below, one of my favorite quotes about July 4th and many of my favorite things to cook. I hope it leaves you inspired, and failing that, that you might forward this email to someone who will enticed to cook up a feast and invite you over.
You have to love a nation that celebrates its independence every July 4, not with a parade of guns, tanks, and soldiers who file by the White House in a show of strength and muscle, but with family picnics where kids throw frisbees, the potato salad gets iffy, and the flies die from happiness. You may think you have overeaten, but it is patriotism. ― Erma Bombeck
Cheers,
Deb
A few short recipe videos
✨ My third cookbook, Smitten Kitchen Keepers, will be out in five months and I cannot wait to share it with you. I hope you will consider preordering it so it’s deposited at your doorstep the moment it’s out in the world and you can get cooking from it right away. Details here! ✨
July 4th Favorites
pickled cabbage salad
I love having a jar of this in the fridge all summer.
rosanne cash’s all-american potato salad
A classic, perfectly seasoned, never overdressed, a little crunchy, always-disappears-first potato salad is a non-negotiable part of our July 4th spread and this is my forever go-to. Just make it; you'll be so glad you did.
piri piri chicken
Inspired by the chicken we had in Portugal years ago, you can make this recipe with any level of heat, a whole chicken or just parts, on a grill or roasted; it's so streamlined and simple, it always comes out this good.
oven ribs, even better
No grill required, these are perfect from the oven every time and the recipe has been updated and streamlined with cooking times that adjust to your schedule and the simplest, most balanced rub yet.
flag cake
This is not only the most delicious flag cake I've made (in my totally unbiased opinion), it's also the easiest: one-bowl cake, dreamy cream cheese frosting, plus all the fresh berries.
red and blue berry ricotta galettes
A simple trimmed shape turns a regular berry galette into cheerful star-centered ones, so perfect for the July 4th holiday.
frozen watermelon mojitos
There is no time like the next heat wave to find new, amazing things to do with watermelon, in this case, freezing it in cubes and blending it with lime juice, rum, and mint for the best frozen mojito I've ever had. (P.S. It's also extremely delicious without the rum.)
watermelon lemonade
If you haven’t been putting watermelon juice in your lemonade, consider this the sign to start: it’s impossibly refreshing and so very pink.
A staple at every one of our barbecues, watch me make Broccoli Slaw here.
shop my favorites
I've created a page on Smitten Kitchen with links to some of my favorite kitchen items, the ones I'm asked about the most. For each item, I've attempted to provide a range of shopping links so we're not just focusing on one giant retailer. Let me know if there’s anything I’ve left off that you need.
See you next week!
