No Apple Pie, but Still Pretty American.

I'm probably the only person in the world who would rather be a sous chef rather than a head chef.

i get really nervous about cooking, and i always fret about the final product. i can't handle the pressure. but i loooove all the prep work in the kitchen. chopping and dicing? sold!

with that in mind, i am headed to my friend's cabin up north for the holiday (omg, i'm such a winsconsiner now!), and i have had a fun, full morning of preparing lots of scrumptious goodies for the weekend. but the most fun, by far, was all the prep work.

Lots of delicious, diced fruits (most of this will actually be used for making whop*, but it'so tasty, i'm gonna help myself to lots of it before it gets an alcohol bath)

cupcakes!!!

i attempted a patriotic color palate, but they kind of came out pink and blue, and look a little more "baby shower"-esk

grape salad. (i realize this doesn't look too tempting...but i couldn't dive in to show you how yummy it is inside. it is in no way a true "salad" and has far more health faults than benefits. but, yum!)

and one of my personal favorites, a some delicious homemade salsa.

this tastes like a bowl of fresh. this is summertime to me.

So that's my contribution to the weekend. Along with an obligatory pack of turkey dogs, of course.

what are your plans for the 4th? making any festive foods?

*when i was young and stupid and used to drink this, we called it hunch punch. but it appears to have a plethora of names. what did you call it?