If you know me at all, you know I do not particularly like the 4th of July. My distaste for the holiday began when I got a dog and progressed when I bought a house. I become full of anxiety because I am sure my dogs WILL run away and my house WILL get set on fire. Unfortunately for me, we moved to the anything goes area of Washtington - Mason County. While the 4th should resemble the mise en scène of The Sandlot, I find it has more of a likeness to The Purge around here.
I like fireworks, I do. I just have a firm criteria. They must be a healthy distance away and beautifully orchestrated by a professional pyrotechnician. For example, I had a phenomenal time at the Bremerton Bridge Blast. I was nestled in safely on a boat surrounded by water...while reluctantly secured to a stranger's boat. Brice, the brother-in-law forgot the anchor.
We had a lovely time, my dogs were home safe and the explosions were nowhere near my house. The only risk was not getting back to mooring ball after the firework show...Brice forgot to get additional gas for the boat.
Despite my apprehensions for this holiday, there is a bright side: the food and the acceptability to drink wine before noon on a weekday. I am pumped to have the classics and try out some new, not so healthy recipes. We had a mini version of the 4th of July spread on the boat Saturday, but I am ready for the real thing. It will also be nice not to eat dishes like pasta salad with our fingers as we did on the boat...Brice forgot the forks.
In order to distract myself from the activities that typically occur on the 4th, I plan to have fun with my food and my wine pairings. I have been attempting to eat clean, it unfortunately is proving more difficult than I had anticipated. I will try to keep things as healthy as possible for the holiday, but I am not guaranteeing anything. I haven't decided on what I will be making, because there are so many amazing recipes and I am not ready to commit. I have been compiling a dream spread on Pinterest , and plan to have narrowed down my faves come the morning.
I will definitely be going with a classic as my main course - the cheeseburger. I saw a beautifully crafted burger on Instagram this past week and my mouth has been watering ever since. Unfortunately, I cannot find that post again. I do remember that they recommended having the burger with a Zinfandel. This is a varietal you can have pretty much anything with you throw on the grill. It is the prime summer RED!
I also plan to delve in my new favorite summer WHITE - Sauvignon Blanc. This has been a recent go-to of mine and I cannot get enough. I love to pair it with dishes that include cilantro and other zesty flavors. With some research, I found that it also pairs well with dairy based dishes, i.e. the mayonnaise in potato salad! I have found so many good recipes for potato salad on Pinterest. The Jalapeno Popper Potato Salad has caught my eye and it will likely be making a debut on my table this Thursday.
To keep form, a sparkling rosé will likely round out my evening - I may need an entire bottle to myself. Otherwise, I will sit tense on my dock trying relax with no hope of enjoying evening. Because of that, I plan to get a little fancy and make the Sparkling Rosé BLUEberry Float I pinned to my 4th of July board.
With that, I have a lot of food decisions to make and meditating to do before the big day. I am excited and apprehensive, but wine and food will get me through it. How will you be coping this 4th of July? I ask as though, I am not the only one with a distaste for this holiday.
Side note: if you have any tips for keeping your dog calm during fireworks comment below.
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