My kind of 4th

Those of you who’ve read the blog for any length of time know I love birthdays.  I share a (nearly) half birthday with the United States and enjoy celebrating this event in my own special way.  Today’s blog post will take a look at those everyday events in my life that I believe truly celebrate America (not Canada – I like those folks, but they had their day on Friday).

Before we start, I just want to point out that I’m not a fan of fireworks.  When my kids were little, their Dad would drag them off to a fireworks display through which the girl would scream and the boy would either cry or hide while Mom had a peaceful hour at home.  These days the girl takes in KaboomFest in Red Bank … and I’m not quite sure what the boy is doing but that’s nothing out of the ordinary.  I never understood the appeal of fake explosions; if I want fake explosions I’ll watch a Bruce Willis movie in the comfort of my own home.

That brings me to my first way to celebrate America: watch either a Tom Hanks or Bruce Willis movie. You’ll cover every film genre with those two actors with the exception of unintelligible French films and brooding, snowy Scandinavian flicks which aren’t very American anyway.  Watch Forest Gump and you get a nice not quite accurate retelling of modern U.S. history, and take in Saving Private Ryan for some serious patriotism.  Watch any Tom Hanks / Meg Ryan flick and you’ll get this American woman’s ideal romance.  Watch any Die Hard movie and you see Eurotrash given their due and a helicopter killed by a car.  I always feel a bit sorry to see Alan Rickman fall off Nokatomi Tower but hey, he’s a Brit, and today’s our day!  After all, we finally have a president that combines the best of both American actors: Obama kicks ass but is quite the loving husband and family man (and knows who’s really in charge in that household).

Now to the second way to celebrate America’s birthday: Eat a lot, preferably prepared with real fire.  As a vegan, I tend to pass on the fire but did provide a few 4th of July BBQ recipes this week over on @jerseygirlcook‘s blog.  I may not kill my holiday dinner but trust me, I can pack just as much fat into a meal as any omnivore in the 48 contiguous states.  (OK, maybe not Georgia – I think Paula Deen beats my fat content every time.)

Americans like any excuse to eat to excess, and our birthday is no exception. Maybe you can get @shoreflicks to set up his outdoor movie screen at your BBQ so you can combine my first AND second way to celebrate the holiday!  Imagine the taste of that favorite summer dish enjoyed while watching Bonfire of the Vanities, a story replete with Wall Street avarice, tabloid journalism, and opportunistic politics … Tom Hanks, Bruce Willis, and everything that makes America great! (I know, it’s R rated, but we don’t do little children at my BBQs.)

To prepare to dine in excess, you should try my third way to celebrate this holiday: visit Walmart!  I know, I too avoided the King of box retailers for years, but recently discovered an incredibly awesome remodeled version not far from my home.  Used to be Target was the kid whose white shirts were still white at dinner time and Walmart was the kid that ate dirt.  Not any more!  My Walmart beats my supermarket prices on just about anything but fresh produce and has everything bread to boot (if Italian bread and an everything bagel had a baby…).  Also, if you need a tshirt to get into the holiday spirit, Walmart kindly uses “American” sizing, i.e. a Large in any other remotely reasonable store is at most Medium here.  You’ll feel so much better about stuffing yourself if you can still fit into that tshirt the day after!

Finally, let’s face it, Americans like to celebrate with liquor.  [Now those of you under the age of 21, look away while the grownups do grown up things.]  As @mswas would say, the obvious choice is beer, but not for me. @sfadem recently treated me to sushi at Klein’s in Belmar (no relation to Ron) and when I ordered a glass of sangria, the server surprisingly asked “red or white?” I was thrilled – a dining establishment that finally gets that white sangria is just as good as red and better in the summer! Alas, it turned out he asked not because Klein’s serves white sangria but because his girlfriend prefers it.  So at your 4th of July revelry, don’t be like Klein’s; try my recipe for white wine sangria and pleasantly surprise your guests!

White Wine Sangria

1 bottle white wine (well, you might as well get 2, it’s a holiday!)

1/4 limoncello liquer (I know, it’s Italian, but this IS Jersey)

1/4 orange juice

1/8 cup lemon juice

1/4 white grape juice

1/2 cup vodka

1 cup halved purple seedless grapes

1 lemon sliced then cut the slices in half

1 orange cut into slices then cut the slices in half

Put it all in a pitcher and chill.  You can add a little soda water but I tend to add either a splash of Fanta (because Fanta just says summer to me) or sparkling water for just a little bubbly.  Pour yourself a glass, grab a seat and a veggie burger on a plate from Walmart, sit back and enjoy an all American movie starring Tom, Bruce, or both!