Eat, Recipes

Freedom Feast!

As soon as I heard that three special friends would be making the trek to Austin for 4th of July weekend, I was instantly inspired to create a menu for our Freedom Feast brunch.  There were two main holiday-themed items on the menu: Red (strawberry), White (banana), and Blue (blueberry) Smoothie Shots, and Flag Waffles! Recipes and photos below:

Red, White, and Blue Smoothie Shots

My intention was to layer the red (strawberry), white (banana), and blue (blueberry) smoothies for a patriotic layering effect. The idea worked better in my head, but they were still tasty and festive, so I’ll still Rebeccammend them for a 4th of July brunch! The problems arose when the purple blueberry smoothie reminded me that only the outside of blueberries are blue, and when the strawberry smoothie was less dense than the banana smoothie, and therefore did not layer evenly on top of the glass. So, we ended up with Blueberry Banana smoothies, and guests enjoyed the Strawberry smoothie separately.   

 

 

 

Red, White, and Blue Smoothie Shots are a refreshing way to start off 4th of July morning!
Red, White, and Blue Smoothie Shots are a refreshing way to start off 4th of July morning!

Ingredients

 

 

  • 1 large package of fresh blueberries
  • 2 large packages of strawberries
  • 5 ripe bananas
  • 1 large container of fat free vanilla yogurt
  • 6 cups of ice
  • 3 tbsp honey for each different smoothie
  • Clear glass or plastic cups

Instructions

  1. Wash and dry blueberries and strawberries
  2. Place the whole container of blueberries in a blender with 1 cup of vanilla yogurt, 3 tablespoons of honey, and 2 cups of ice (do not put the ice at the bottom, or it won’t blend easily)
  3. Blend until smooth
  4. Pour into 1/3 of clear glass or plastic cups (enough for the amount of guests you’ll be serving)
  5. Wash and dry the blender pitcher for the next smoothie layer (banana-white)
  6. Repeat steps 2-4 with the bananas
  7. Wash and dry the blender pitcher for the last smoothie layer (strawberry-red)
  8. Repeat steps 2-4, but include 2 large packages of strawberries (hopefully this will make the strawberry smoothie more dense and less runny, which will enable you to add the top layer successfully), and only 1 cup of ice
  9. Decorate each glass with a 4th of July-themed straw, or alternate red, white, and blue straws if you can’t find the fireworks straws I got at Target
  10. Serve and enjoy! 
 

 

 

Flag Waffles are a fun, festive, easy, and healthy way to entertain a 4th of July brunch bunch!
Flag Waffles are a fun, festive, easy, and healthy way to entertain a 4th of July brunch bunch!

Flag Waffles 

 

 

 Ingredients

  • 1 or 2 boxes of your favorite waffle mix (many pancake mixes can be modified to make waffles with a few ingredient swaps or additions)- I used FiberOne Whole Wheat Pancake and Waffle Mix, which was actually delicious and healthy!
  • Follow the instructions on the waffle mix box and grab the necessary ingredients. I like to make it easy and use a mix that only needs water and maybe a little oil, which I always have on hand.
  • 1 can of light whipped cream
  • 1 package of strawberries
  • 1 package of blueberries
  • 1 bottle of pure maple syrup
  • 1 square-shaped waffle maker appliance (Thanks, Mom, for lending me yours! Worked like a charm!)
  • Non-stick cooking spray

Instructions 

  1. Plug in the waffle maker so that it has time to warm
  2. Wash and dry the strawberries and blueberries
  3. Cut the strawberry stems off, then cut them in half, and then half again, so that you have strawberry fourths (triangles with 2 flat edges which will lay flat on the waffles during decoration)
  4. Prepare waffle mix as instructed on the box
  5. Pour batter into the waffle maker and cook until golden brown
  6. Place each finished waffle on separate plates
  7. Use the whipped cream spray can to spray 3 horizontal stripes across the rectangular waffles, then fill in the upper left corner with whipped cream
  8. Place strawberry fourths horizontally between the stripes across the entire waffle
  9. Fill the upper left-hand corner with blueberries
  10. Serve with syrup and the Red, White, and Blue Smoothie Shots, and enjoy!




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3 thoughts on “Freedom Feast!”

  • Natanya Anderson July 6, 2009 at 5:57 pm

    Those flag waffles are beyond cute – my daughter would love to make those. The concept opens up a whole new realm of holiday waffle possibilities 🙂

  • TheRebecca July 7, 2009 at 2:48 pm

    Thanks, Natanya! You gave me inspiration for waffle fixins for another holiday coming up in a few months 🙂

  • What’s Cracklin’ this 4th July 2, 2010 at 8:51 am

    […] photo you see above is of a Flag Waffle I made last year (before my site redesign) for 4th of July brunch. I’m not going to repost the recipe– […]


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