Fourth of July Foods

In case you haven't guessed, I'm not really much of a grill master. I blame the fact that I don't own a grill (no balcony in my apartment) and my tendency to use more vegetables and less meat. So if you don't think there's enough meat in this post about foods on the 4th, then I'm sorry. Believe me, there was still plenty of grilled chicken to go around...

Besides, those are pineapple chunks wrapped in bacon up there. I got this idea from Mark Bittman, who suggested pineapple wrapped in prosciutto as part of his "101 Fast Grilling Recipes." Nea did all the cooking. Here she is getting excited.
I did make a side dish that was great for garnishing grilled meats. This pickled onions recipe yielded a tasty, vinegary side.
Finally, it's a Fourth of July tradition at my house for my Grandmother to prepare a dessert trifle. She's always kind enough to pretend I helped in some way, though she's the master. Anyway, it's delicious with yogurt, angel food cake, berries and jello.

Lemon Yogurt Cake

I love lemons. If I had lived in a cool climate hundreds of years ago, I probably would have asked you for lemons for Christmas. Loving me as you do, you would have bought me several, and I would have baked you a delicious lemon cake as a reward.

Thanks to globalization and fossil fuels, I can now buy lemons any time I want...

But still, a lemon cake was in order. The whole wheat flour made it healthier, but maybe less delicious than this similar smitten kitchen cake. I didn't follow that recipe exactly anyway. My cake was still very tasty and maybe a little healthy.

Ingredients:
1 cup plan, whole milk yogurt, unsweetened
1/4 lemon juice
2 tbs butter
1 cup sugar
Zest of one lemon
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs
1 2/3 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups fresh berries (I used blueberries and a few raspberries)
**You can use frozen berries too**

Grease two small bread loaf pans with the butter, use some cooking spray if surface is uneven. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine all liquid ingredients and stir well. Add sugar, and stir that well too. Add the dry ingredients and the rest of the butter, and mix until the batter has virtually no lumps. Fold in berries and pour batter into pans. Bake for 45 minutes to an hour. It's done when a toothpick comes out clean.

Peanut Butter and Jelly Muffins

This one definitely warranted a fist pump. A PBJ themed muffin/cupcake seemed like a really cute idea, and this recipe (all my own) worked well. The muffins are delicious, though I should have used less or no nutmeg. I'm also giving myself bonus points for adding fiber and antioxidants...

I'm not a big fan of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, but there is something nice about the flavor combo in muffin form, at least to me. It's also going to be a healthy and filling breakfast, thanks to the whole wheat flour, berries and small amount of peanut butter.

Ingredients:
2 cups whole wheat flour
3/4 cups sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon nutmeg (optional)
1/4 cup berry jam ( I used a very sweet Mixed Berry Jam, but you can pick your own damn berry)
1/4 cup brandy (optional)
1 cup frozen mixed berries (blue and black berries, strawberries and raspberries)
2 eggs, beaten
1/3 cup milk (I mixed skim milk and heavy cream, but whatever you've got is fine)
1/3 cup butter, softened
Peanut butter (for spreading when the muffins are done)

Defrost your frozen berries in the brandy. The brandy is by no means necessary for this recipe, but I like cooking with alcohol and I think it added something. Make sure they defrost all the way, because it helps if they are at room temperature when you mix them with the butter later.

Thoroughly mix all of your dry ingredients in a medium sized bowl. In a large bowl, mix all of your wet ingredient, including the berries and jam but not the peanut butter, obviously. Because of the berries and jam, you don't really need food coloring for that nice berry-colored muffin. I added a little blue and red just in case.

Wet Ingredients

Combine wet and dry ingredients and mix well. Add this batter to a cupcake pan, into paper or metallic baking cups. Bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees. To make sure they're done, use the trustworthy toothpick trick. Let them cool for about 15 minutes, and serve with peanut butter on top like frosing, or smeared on the side.