This 4th of July, our team will be focusing our celebrations on connection and community. We’ll be having small, socially-distanced outdoor gatherings with family and making some of our favorite food and drinks. Check out some of the Psinapse team‘s favorite Fourth of July recipes below!

White Wine Sangria

Start your celebrations off with this refreshing, festive wine cocktail!

What you’ll need:

• 1 bottle of your favorite white wine (I generally use Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc)
• 2 ounces of vodka (scale this up or down depending on your preference for alcohol content, can also substitute with brandy)
• Thinly sliced fresh fruit (for aesthetic and flavor, so use what you like!)
  • Strawberries
  • Apples
  • Oranges
  • Lemons/limes
• Frozen Berries (raspberries, blueberries, blackberries… whatever mix you can find! These add a lovely red and blue color, which is perfect for the 4th, and they help to keep things cold!)
• 1 cup of grapefruit sparkling water (whichever flavor sparkling water is your favorite, will work perfectly)

Combine all ingredients EXCEPT the sparkling water in a large pitcher or punch bowl (sometimes, I even use a big soup tureen!) and mix well.

Allow to sit in a refrigerator or cooler for half an hour or more to infuse all of the flavors of the fruit.

Just before serving, add the sparkling water so as not to lose the carbonation beforehand.

Drink up and enjoy responsibly!

Edamame Salad

Try this bright, easy, summer side dish for any outdoor picnic or BBQ you’re having over this long weekend! It’s full of protein, texture, and flavor! And did we mention it’s easy?

What you’ll need:

• 12 oz. bag of frozen edamame
• 3 oz. grated parmesan cheese (about 1 cup – use more if you want more of a parm flavor…I usually do)
• ¾ cup roasted almonds – roughly chopped (I like using unsalted almonds so I can control the amount of salt in the overall dish, but use what you like!)
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil
• Juice of half of a lemon (add more to taste)
• Salt and pepper to taste

You can serve this either hot or cold and it is the perfect light side to any barbecued main course.

Enjoy!

Grilled Vegetable Quinoa Salad

What you’ll need:

• 6 cups cooked quinoa
• Extra Virgin olive oil
• For the grill (keep in mind, any and all of the veggies can be omitted or replaced by whatever you like!):
  • 3-4 large ripe lemons, cut into wedges
  • 2 portobello mushrooms
  • 1 yellow onion
  • 1 bunch of asparagus
  • 1 head of radicchio
  • 1 zucchini
• Garnish with:
  • A large handful of cherry tomatoes, cut into halves
  • 1 bundle of spring onion, chopped

Prepare the onion and zucchini for the grill by cutting them into grill-sized strips or wedges. Cut the radicchio in half. Leave the portobello and asparagus whole while grilling.

Brush the prepared veggies with olive oil for flavor and to avoid sticking on the grill.

Grill vegetables on medium heat, flipping at halfway point, until dark grill marks appear and then pull them off (about 4 minutes for the asparagus and radicchio, 7 minutes for the zucchini and onions, 8-10 minutes for the portobellos (definitely remember to flip these halfway!))

Place the lemon wedges on tinfoil (so you don’t lose any juice!) and grill until they caramelize (about 3-4 minutes), then set aside to cool. Your goal is to save as much juice as possible.

Combine the grilled vegetables with the quinoa in a bowl, then squeeze the juice from half of a grilled lemon in and mix until combined. 

Add the halved cherry tomatoes and the spring onions on top along with the remaining grilled lemon wedges.

Tip: The grilled lemon wedges serve as the dressing for this dish. Each person should get at least one grilled lemon wedge with their serving. They can then squeeze the caramelized lemon juice over the top of their own salad and enjoy!

Beer Can Chicken

Beer + Chicken. Can you name a more iconic duo? (Setting aside chocolate and peanut butter just for the moment.) This juicy main dish is sure to be a hit at any Fourth of July celebration. Though it is a team member favorite, she did not come up with the recipe on her own. That glory goes Pat and Gina Neely.

What you’ll need:

• To rub the chicken:
  • 2 tablespoons smoked paprika
  • 2 tablespoons salt
  • 2 tablespoons onion powder
  • 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
  • 1 tablespoon ground cumin
  • 2 teaspoons dried thyme
  • 2 teaspoons dried oregano
  • 2 teaspoons black pepper
  • 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1 4-pound chicken
• Vegetable oil
• 1 12-ounce can of your favorite beer

Mix all of the ingredients for the rub together.

Preheat your grill to medium-high heat.

Rub the chicken inside and out with vegetable oil, followed by a generous amount of the rub.

Open your beer and drink a quarter of it (or you could just pour it out…). Sit the chicken on top of the can of beer.

Place the chicken in the center of the grill and cook for 1-1 1/2 hours (internal temperature of the chicken should be 165°F).

Remove the chicken from the heat, cover with foil, and let rest for 10 minutes.

Bon Appetit!

Concord Fries (aka Triple-Cooked Chips)

This is a favorite of one of our team members, but he can’t claim complete credit. Renowned British chef, Heston Blumenthal, created this perfect recipe for chips that produces smooth, creamy insides and a crunchy outer shell (What’s more American than a french fry? Setting aside the obvious… British chef, French name).

What you’ll need:

• 4-5 Golden Wonder or Yukon Gold Potatoes, cleaned and cut into about equal-sized wedges
• Frying Oil (Vegetable or Canola Oil)
• Salt
• Ketchup/Mayonnaise/Aioli/Malt Vinegar to dip

Put your potato wedges in a large pot of cold, unsalted water and bring to a simmer. Allow to simmer for about 20 minutes until the potatoes just start to break apart.

Gently remove the parboiled potato wedges from the water and place them in a single layer on a wire rack. If you don’t see cracks all over the potatoes, gently score the cool, parboiled wedges with a knife making small slits on their surface (this will allow oil to to get into the potato slightly, allowing for a crispy crust).

Make sure there’s space in your freezer, because the wedges need to cool in the freezer for about an hour to get rid of as much moisture as possible.

While these are cooling, heat frying oil to medium-high (about 265°F). Take the wedges out of the freezer 10 minutes before you are ready to fry.

Place wedges in oil and fry until light golden brown, around 5-6 minutes.

Take light golden-brown fries out of oil and place them in the fridge for 10-15 minutes to cool.

Turn up the temperature of the oil to high and fry the wedges one more time for 2-3 minutes to create an extra crispy outside.  Keep an eye on the chips.  When they turn a darker brown, they’re done!

Take fries out of oil and immediately salt them to taste.

After all of this hard work, make sure to enjoy!

Red, White and Blue Brownies

What you’ll need:

• 1 box Betty Crocker™ fudge brownie mix
• Water, vegetable oil, and eggs called for on brownie mix
• 1 ½ cups M&M’s® in red, white, and blue

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease bottom of 13×9-inch pan with cooking spray or shortening.

Make batter as directed on box of brownie mix. Spread in pan. Bake for 10 minutes, then remove the brownies partially baked.

Sprinkle M&M’s® over partially baked brownies. Return pan to oven for 10-13 more minutes or until toothpick inserted 2 inches from side of pan comes out almost clean.

Cool completely, about 1 hour (let’s be honest, I eat them when they’re still hot enough to burn my mouth, but I don’t recommend it).

Cut into desired-size squares.

Serve and enjoy!

Happiest of Fourth of July’s from our family here ate PsiNapse to yours! Eat, drink, (wear your masks), and be merry!