Fourth of July Picnic

Fried Chicken

1 c flour
1/2 c fine dry breadcrumbs
1 t salt
1 t paprika
1/4 t pepper
3 lbs. chicken pieces
vegetable oil or shortening for frying

Combine flour, breadcrumbs, salt, pepper and paprika in a plastic bag. Add 2 or 3 pieces of chicken at a time and shake to coat. Place chicken pieces in a heavy skillet in 1/2" of hot oil. Turn with tongs to brown evenly, 15 to 20 minutes. When lightly browned, add 3 tablespoons of water; cover and cook over low heat 45 to 60 minutes or until tender. Uncover for the last 10 to 15 minutes of cooking to re-crisp the chicken. Serving Size: 4


Oven Fried Chicken

3/4 c buttermilk
3-lbs. skinless chicken breasts
3/4 c corn flake crumbs
2 t paprika
1/2 t ground black pepper
1/8 t cayenne pepper
1 t salt

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Coat a shallow metal baking or roasting pan with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside. Pour the buttermilk into a shallow bowl. Add the chicken, turning to coat. Refrigerate for at least 15 minutes, turning occasionally.

On a plate, combine the corn flake crumbs, paprika, salt, black pepper and red pepper. One at a time, dip each side of the chicken into the corn flake mixture, pressing firmly to coat. Stir the corn flake mixture occasionally with a fork to keep the seasonings evenly mixed. Place the chicken in the prepared pan.

Spray the chicken with the nonstick cooking spray. Bake, turning the pieces once, for 40 to 45 minutes or until the chicken is crisp, golden brown and the juices run clear when pricked with a sharp knife. Serving Size : 4

NOTES : Can use chicken legs or thighs or a combination.


Ham Surprise Sandwiches

2 eggs, hard-boiled
16 oz. ham -- shredded
16 oz. Swiss cheese -- grated
1 stalk celery -- finely chopped
mustard and mayonnaise -- to taste
2 pkgs Pillsbury Refrigerated Crescent Rolls

Mix the filling ingredients together. Take 2 crescent roll triangles and pinch together the front and back. Put the filling in the middle (not too much) and fold over, tucking in the ends. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes. Delicious hot or cold.
Serving Size: 8


All American Potato Salad

2 1/2 lbs small boiling potatoes
3 T cider vinegar, or to taste
5 hard-boiled large eggs
1/8 c mayonnaise
2 T Dijon mustard
1/2 c chopped sweet onion
3 large celery ribs

Boil potatoes. In a large saucepan cover potatoes with salted cold water by 1 inch and simmer, covered, until just tender, about 15 to 30 minutes, depending on size of potatoes. In a colander drain potatoes and cool to warm. With a sharp knife peel warm potatoes and cut into 1/3-inch-thick slices. In a bowl immediately toss potatoes with vinegar. In a bowl mash yolks and stir in mayonnaise, mustard, and onion. Chop whites and celery and gently toss together with potatoes, mayonnaise mixture, and salt and pepper to taste. Serve potato salad chilled or at room temperature.
Serves: 6


Lite Potato Salad

6 medium potatoes
1 c fat-free mayonnaise
1 T white vinegar
1 T brown mustard
1/2 t salt
1/4 t ground black pepper
2 ribs celery -- chopped
1 small onion -- chopped
2 eggs, hard-boiled -- chopped
3 egg whites -- hard-boiled (discard the yokes)

Put the potatoes in a large saucepan and cover them with water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low. Simmer for 30-35 minutes, or until the potatoes can easily be pierced with a fork. Drain the potatoes and allow to cool until safe to handle. Peel the potatoes and cut them into 1-inch cubes.

In a large bowl, combine the mayonnaise, vinegar, mustard, salt and pepper. Stir to mix well. Add the potatoes, celery, onion, eggs and egg whites. Stir to mix well. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours to blend the flavors before serving.
Serving Size: 12


Sour Cream Potato Salad

3 c potatoes
2 eggs, hard-boiled -- chopped
1/2 c chopped celery
1 c sour cream
1/3 c sweet pickles -- chopped
2 t salt
1/3 c chopped onion
1/2 c pimiento -- chopped
1 T vinegar
1 T prepared mustard
1/2 t pepper

Cook potatoes and put in the refrigerator until cold. Cut into small pieces. Combine the potatoes with all the other ingredients and chill before serving.
Serving Size: 8


New England Coleslaw

1 c mayonnaise
1/2 c white wine vinegar
1 T Dijon mustard
2 t sugar
1 T caraway seed
salt and pepper -- to taste
8 c cabbage -- finely sliced
1 c grated carrots
1 c onion -- finely sliced

Combine the mayonnaise, vinegar, mustard, sugar and caraway seeds. Season with salt and pepper.

Put the cabbage, carrots and onions in a large bowl. Add the dressing to the vegetables and mix well. Taste for seasoning. Cover and refrigerate 1-2 hours. The cabbage will become more tender the longer it marinates. Serving Size: 8

NOTES: Use a mixture of green and red cabbage.


Fat Free Coleslaw

1/4 c fat-free mayonnaise
2 T white wine vinegar
1 T sugar
2 t Dijon mustard
1/2 head cabbage -- shredded
1/8 t salt
1/2 small red onion -- finely chopped

In a large bowl, combine the mayonnaise, vinegar, sugar, mustard and salt. Stir to mix thoroughly.

Add the cabbage and onion. Stir to mix well. Cover tightly and refrigerate for at least 4 hours to blend the flavors before serving. Serving Size: 4


Broccoli and Cauliflower Salad

1/2 c mayonnaise
1/4 c oil
1/3 c sugar
3 T balsamic vinegar
1 small cauliflower, head
1 small broccoli -- head
1 red onion
1 c mozzarella cheese
1 c cheddar cheese
1 c bacon bits

Mix mayonnaise, oil, sugar and vinegar together and let stand for 1 hour. Cut up the cauliflower, broccoli, onion and cheeses. Mix together with the bacon bits. Pour the mayonnaise over the cut up vegetables.
Serving Size: 6


Fruit Salad

pineapple slices
orange slices
sliced bananas
grapes
honeydew melon balls
strawberries
blueberries
watermelon balls

Cut a seedless watermelon in half. Using a melon baller, scoop out the inside of one half of the watermelon. Fill the empty watermelon shell with the fruit.


LEMON HONEY DRESSING

1/3 c frozen lemonade or limeade concentrate -- undiluted and thawed
1/3 c honey
1/3 c salad oil
1 t celery seeds

Mix the ingredients for the Lemon Honey Dressing in a small bowl. Beat thoroughly. Makes 1 cup.

Pour the dressing over the fruit and mix gently. Chill.

NOTES : To prevent the banana slices from darkening, dip them in lemon juice. The amount of fruit and dressing depends on the size of the watermelon shell.


Strawberry Pretzel Salad

1 stick butter, melted
1 c pretzels, crushed
3 T sugar
1 c pecans, crushed
1-8 oz cream cheese, softened
1-8 oz non-dairy whipped topping
1 c powdered sugar
1-6 oz pkg strawberry gelatin
1-16 oz. pkg frozen strawberries
2 c hot water

Combine melted butter, pretzels, sugar, and pecans. Pat into bottom of 13x9x2-inch pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes; cool. Beat together cream cheese, whipped topping, and powdered sugar. Spread on top of pretzel mixture. Refrigerate 30 minutes, or until completely chilled. Dissolve gelatin in boiling water. Add strawberries; stir until gelatin begins to thicken and cool. Poor over cream cheese mixture. Refrigerate, covered, until firm. Before serving, top with additional whipped topping, if desired. Serves: 12-15

Note: Prepare the night before or the day of serving so the pretzel layer will remain crisp. When not using nuts, use 2 cups of pretzels.


Skyrocket Ice Pops

red juice (red raspberry, cherry, cranberry)
red string licorice for fuse
blue juice (blue Kool Aid, Gatorade, blue raspberry) white
3 oz. paper cups
juice (lemonade, coconut juice drink)
Popsicle Sticks

Line up several 3 oz. paper cups on a baking sheet. Pour 2 tablespoons of red juice into each cup. Freeze 2-3 hours until firm slushy. Remove from freezer and poke a Popsicle stick into the center of each cup of juice. Add 2 tablespoons of white juice and freeze 2-3 hours. Remove from freezer. Top off with blue juice and freeze 1-2 hours until slushy. Remove from freezer and insert a 2 or 3-inch string of licorice into each Popsicle. Freeze until hard. Peel off paper cups to serve.


Low Fat Double Chocolate Fudge Brownies

1 1/2 c flour
1/2 c unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 c sugar
1/8 t baking powder
1/3 c chocolate syrup
1/2 t salt
1/3 c light corn syrup
2/3 c plain nonfat yogurt
2 egg whites
1/4 c skim milk
2 t vanilla extract

ICING

2 c powdered sugar
1 1/2 T unsweetened cocoa powder
pinch of salt
1/4 c skim milk
butter flavored cooking spray
1 t vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Spray a 13x9-inch pan with cooking spray and wipe with a paper towel to absorb the excess. Dust the pan with flour and shake out the excess. In a large bowl, combine flour, cocoa, sugar, baking powder and salt. To the dry mixture, add the chocolate syrup, corn syrup, yogurt, egg whites, skim milk and vanilla and mix well. Pour the batter into the pan evenly. Bake for 30 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes.

In a medium-sized bowl, mix together the powdered sugar, cocoa, salt, milk and vanilla. Spread the icing evenly over the warm brownies. Cool completely, then cut into squares. Serving Size: 15


Here's a neat idea for ice-cream: Slice a watermelon in half. Scoop out the flesh. (Serve it with a fruit salad). Fill the empty shell with raspberry sherbet and smooth it down. Stick chocolate chips in 2 rows along each side to resemble seeds. Freeze until serving time.


Fourth Of July Punch

In an ice cube tray, pour red fruit-flavored drinks (Kool-Aid) into some cubes and blue-colored fruit-flavored drinks into the remaining cubes. Freeze, then serve with seltzer or clear soda in a clear tumbler. As the cubes melt, they'll release colored swirls into the soda.