Feed your Fourth of July partiers delicious salad sides.
Most Fourth of July celebrations are done potluck style. Grilled burgers and dogs need some kind of cool accompaniment. Round out your Fourth of July feast with a variety of patriotic salads. Not just for veggies anymore, these Fourth of July salads range from pasta-based to gelatin-based. Offer a mix of tastes to satisfy all of your patriotic revelers.
Gelatin Salad
This salad has three layers. In the first layer, boil 2 cups of water. Dissolve a 3-ounce package of raspberry gelatin into the boiling water and pour into a 9-by-13-inch pan. Cool in refrigerator until firm.
For the second layer, soften 1 envelope of unflavored gelatin in cold water. Mix 1 cup of half and half and 1 cup of sugar until hot; do not let boil. Add unflavored gelatin and 8 ounces of softened cream cheese to the heated sugar and cream mixture. Blend ingredients together until smooth. Pour over the first layer of salad and let cool until firm.
For the last layer, dissolve a of raspberry gelatin in 1 cup of boiling water. Add 1 16-ounce can of undrained blueberries. Pour mixture over the second layer of the salad. Chill in refrigerator until firm.
Pasta Salad
Create your own dressing for this salad. Add variations to taste. Mix together 1/4 cup of mayonnaise, 1/4 cup sour cream, 1/4 cup crumbled blue cheese, 1 1/2 teaspoons milk, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 teaspoon of white vinegar, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, 1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon of honey mustard and 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper. Set dressing mixture aside.
Boil 2 1/2 cups penne or tube pasta. Saute 1 minced garlic clove and 3/4 teaspoon minced basil in 2 tablespoons of oil. Pour in cooked pasta. Add 1 1/2 cup cauliflowers, 1 cup halved cherry tomatoes, 3 chopped green onions, 1/4 cup chopped red pepper, 4 ounces mozzarella cheese and 2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese. Coat entire dish with dressing mixture. Serve hot or cold.
BLT Salad
Boil 16 ounces of medium shell pasta. Cook until tender. Drain and rinse with cold water. Cook 1 pound of sliced bacon in a skillet over medium heat. Crispy bacon works best. Place cooked bacon on paper towels to drain. Mix together 1 small chopped onion, 2 chopped tomatoes and 1 1/2 cups ranch dressing. Add cooled pasta to veggie and dressing mixture. Leave in the refrigerator overnight. Before serving, crumble cooked bacon over salad.
Stars And Stripes Salad
In a large bowl, mix 10 ounces of chopped fresh spinach with 1 cup of chopped onions. Place mixture in a shallow glass pan or plastic container. Remove seeds and membrane from 3 large red peppers. Lay flat and cut star shapes into the peppers using a 2-inch star-shaped cookie cutter. You should get 5 stars from each pepper. Place peppers in a row on top of the spinach and onion mixture. Hard boil 6 eggs. Add chopped eggs in rows between the pepper stars. Serve with a variety of dressings on the side.
Tags: Fourth July, dressing mixture, until firm, 3-ounce package,