A Great Fourth of July Picnic Menu

July fourth is in just a few weeks and now is the time to plan your menu. This article includes a whole menu from appetizers to desert. Just add patriotic plates, color coordinated plastic software and the fireworks and you will have a fourth to remember.

Appetizers for Fourth of July

Go ahead, slice up some American cheese and some pepperoni, and put them on a plate along with some crackers. If you like, raw veggies slice some up and place them on a fancy dish along with a small container of ranch dressing. If you want to save time you can but these items already sliced up so all you need to do is place them on a plate.

Drinks for the Fourth of July

For some cool refreshing punch grab a half gallon of sherbet, a 2 liter of ginger ale, and a large jug of Hawaiian punch and pour all three into a punch bowl. This is great on hot July days and it makes plenty.

To beat the heat and put off dehydration make sure you have plenty of juices available to drink. Skip the Pepsi, coke, and other soft drinks as they do not work to keep you from dehydrating a body.

Salads for the Fourth of July

Now for the salad we are going to make a nice pasta salad that every one can enjoy. Cook a pound box of pasta until it is done, go ahead and boil some eggs now. Drain the pasta and set it aside. Now grab some cherry tomatoes, cubed cheese, pepperoni, and broccoli and pour them into the pasta. Shell the eggs when they are cool enough and pour in with the pasta mix. Now go ahead and toss the salad with some mayonnaise and some of a bottled salad dressing of your choice. It is a yummy salad and a great alternative to those of us who dislike the oil based pasta salads. Keep chilled until it is time to eat!

I have more summer salads in an article I wrote a while ago you are more then welcome to check it out and see if there is anything there to your liking. The link is below in the links section.

Meats for the Fourth of July

Marinade your beef or pork in a marinade of your choice for a few hours and then toss it on the grill.

Take a pork roast, put it in a crock-pot the night before, and let it cook all night long. You will be adding 1 bottle of prepared barbeque sauce, half a cup of honey or pancake syrup and ½ a cup of grape jelly. When the meat is fully cooked, you will be able to use a fork to separate the meat into little shreds. Take the crock-pot to the serving table and make sure to set the buns close.

Little Wieners are always a hit at any summer get together and they are so easy to make. One of our family favorites is these little hotdogs. Mom begins by taking four or five packages of hotdogs, brand name is unimportant but she uses a variety. She also uses at least one package of venison hotdogs. She slices all these hotdogs up and puts them in a large pan and cooks them for hours in a unique sauce. This sauce is one bottle of ketchup, and one jar of grape jelly. As this dish cooks, the sauce will thicken and flavor the hot dogs nicely. Just cook these hotdogs until the sauce thickened and serve them. These hotdogs can also be made in a crock-pot.

Desserts for Fourth of July

Bring out a delicious dessert you have made the night before the party! Here is a great idea.

You take an angel food cake, remove it from the pan, and invert it on a plate. Now about an inch down from the top slice it in half. Now set the top of the cake to the side and carefully take a spoon and scoop out a ring of cake.

It needs to be at least a spoonful deep around the cake. Now take some cherry pie filling and spoon it into where you removed the cake. Now carefully pick up the top ring of cake and set it atop of the other part of the cake. Put the pieces that you scooped out into the center hole of the cake and now spread cool whip all over the entire cake.

After dark when you light your fireworks off pull out these great. To make smores ahead of time you will need to use a jar of marshmallow not the puffed ones. Now take gram crackers and place them on a lined cookie sheet, side by side, add a piece of a chocolate bar on each cracker. Now add a spoonful of marshmallow to each pile and top each with another cracker. Now pop them in an oven and heat until the smores melt. Serve and enjoy.

Setting the table with style.

Pick up the white paper plates and festive napkins at your local Wal-Mart or other department store. Grab some plastic silverware in red and blue colors to add a festive touch to your table. Purchase some red solo plastic cups from Wal-Mart for your drinks.

Wal-Mart is a great way to finance your Fourth of July picnic, because the prices there just cannot be beat.

Go ahead and set the table with your ketchup, mustard and relishes and anything else you will need to eat. Add plenty of baked beans, coleslaw, hotdog, and hamburger rolls to the table as well.

Reference:

• www.associatedcontent.com/article/255912/quick_and_easy_cakes_for_picnics_and.html