It’s Independence Day!
How are you spending the holiday? …Going out on the lake? …Firing up the grill? …Getting together with family and friends? …Going out to watch fireworks? I don’t specifically remember not watching fireworks any year, but I’m sure there was a year or two missed in there somewhere. When we lived in town, we could see them from our house. Fireworks is what I think of first when I think ‘4th of July’, then I think of my oldest brother (Happy Birthday, Tom!), then I think of grilling and burgers and brats. I know, with having a cooking blog, you’d think grilling and all would be first on my list.
Speaking of grilling, I’m sure we’ll be doing some. Here are some of our favorites:
Hot dogs, our favorites are Ball Park beef franks…
Brats, it’s gotta be Johnsonville…
Cheeseburger, this has got to go on the menu this weekend! I’ll have to talk to the guy in charge of grilling around here…
New York Strip Steak, and please don’t forget the sauteed mushrooms! Mmmmm…
Rib-Eye Steak done medium, this was melt-in-your-mouth tender, didn’t even need A1 sauce…
Shrimp and mushrooms grilled on skewers, a great appetizer…
Pork chop sandwich, last but definitely not least! This is the thing out of this whole list that we grill the most. Yup, even more than throwing hot dogs and brats on the grill. Maybe next time we make them, I can remember to get a better picture! They’re easy, at least for me, because all I do is set the table…
And then I couldn’t let the holiday go by without playing around with my beloved for-any-occassion layered finger jello! It’s a nice side benefit that it tastes good, too.
Instead of using a 9×13 pan for a batch, I used a large cookie sheet with sides so it wouldn’t get so thick. The red and blue layers each have 2 batches of jello in them and the white layer is all of the white mixture (as opposed to dividing it in thirds). When I cut it into little shapes, it looks better if it’s not so thick.
And then you can play around with it a little more and makes squares and cut a star out of the middle, flip it over, and put it back into the hole.
And then you can play around with it a little more and make the United States of America…
And, being in the spirit of things, this is what I was snacking on just now as I wrote this post…
Red strawberries, white sugar, and blue blueberries.
Have a safe and happy holiday!
Food Ideas for a Baby Shower
I just ran across some pictures of a baby shower that I was at recently. So, I’ll post pictures of the food in case anyone needs any ideas if you’re planning one. As I go to more baby showers, I’ll be sure to take pictures of the food and post them. I’d love to post some other pictures too, like of the washline game we played, but I guess I’ll just stick to the food. 
This baby carriage was so cute. Someone did a good job on it! 
The girl in the white dress is the new mother-to-be… lookin’ good for 8 months pg! We also had chips and dip, which you can’t really see on any of the pictures.
——————————————————————————————————–
This shower was from a couple years ago. We had a baby boom at church and one of them was a first-time mom.
That fruit pizza was great!
The ice cream wasn’t out yet on this picture. We also had hot chocolate made with melted candy bars. It was SO good. I need to get that recipe from my friend who made it.
———————————————————————————————————
And I’m also adding a couple pictures of the baby shower that my friends did for me just before Lexi was born 5 1/2 years ago. I don’t have digital pictures of it, I just scanned a page of Lexi’s baby album, so the quality isn’t as good.
Notice there’s another watermelon baby carriage. That must be THE thing!
What other foods have you seen at or made for baby showers?
About Me
Hi! Welcome to my kitchen! My name is Kay. I'm from central Ohio. I love cooking and baking. Especially baking. It's therapeutic for me. I'm not a professional or gourmet cook by any means. I'm a Christian homemaker who happens to take pictures of some of the food I make. I have 2 little 'helpers'... Lexi (9) and Tiffany (5), who are young cooks in training. And I should mention Megan (born in June 2010), altho' she's not in training yet. She's more in charge of inside-the-cupboards demolition when she's in the kitchen. I don't do anything on the grill... that's where my husband Shannon comes in! He grills quite a bit, especially in the summer. So, sit back and enjoy browsing thro' the recipes. If you try some of them, I'd love to hear feedback on how you liked them! If you want to contact me, my email address is kay@kitchenscrapbook.com