10 Memorial Day recipes for an all-American family BBQ
Memorial Day weekend is just hours away, and you can almost taste it already. Because after all the wonderful patriotic meaning of the day, of course, it's all about the food -- BBQfood, in particular.
For many of us, it's the first time we brush the cobwebs off the grill and light it up. Backyards, parks, and beaches across the country will be filled with the sweet smell of smoke and sounds of summer days soon to come that only Memorial Day brings.
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Of course, such a significant holiday deserves special fare. So to help you plan your menu, here are 10 festive and family-friendly recipes for a BBQ.
1. Start off on a patriotic note with Red, White, and Bruschetta. The tasty appetizer contains tomatoes, feta cheese, and garlic with the sweet tang of blueberries. Yum!
2. Kids and adults alike will go crazy for Red, White & Blueberry Skewers. Serve them as an easy appetizer or a side dish along with the rest of the spread.
3. Blueberry & Walnut Spinach Salad: I made this for a recent beach barbecue, and it was a delicious combination of sweet and savory. It was also super easy and withstood the heat well. Add in some dried cranberries or cherries for a pop of red too.
4. Support those Midwest corn farmers and grab some corn on the cob. This recipe for grilled corn on the cobis amazing.
5. For the main meal, you can't go wrong with good old American burgers. But they don't have to be the same old, same old; there are plenty of interesting twists on them you can take. From bacon burgers to ones topped with an egg, here are 10 Favorite Burger Recipes from Food & Wine.
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6. If you love the burger but want to banish the beef, these Deluxe Grilled Turkey Burgers are a great alternative. Topped with bacon, cheese, and a ranch sauce, what's not to love?
7. Burgers aren't the only protein in grill town; chicken can own the space too. This Ultimate Barbecued Chicken recipe from Tyler Florence will satisfy the heartiest of appetites.
8. Don't have a grill? (Gasp!) You too can enjoy some barbecued meat courtesy of your slow cooker. This recipe for Pulled Barbecue Pork Sandwiches is memorable.
9. For dessert, Apple Pie Bars fit the bill. They pack all the proud-to-be-an-American sentiment, but in an easier-to-eat form than a traditional pie.
10. Or if you want to end with some color -- red, white, and blue, of course -- this Flag Cake from Ina Garten is both beautiful and delicious. Let them (and you!) eat cake, indeed.
What are your favorite Memorial Day recipes?
Image via cs.belgum/Flickr
Written by Julie Ryan Evans for CafeMom's blog, The Stir.
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