Community Corner

Some Fresh Twists for Your Fourth of July Cookout

If you are tired of burgers, dogs and potato salad, here are some alternatives that won't take a lot of extra work.

With a long weekend upon us, it’s almost a sure bet that there is a cookout in your future. Here are a few suggestions if you want to bypass the standard burgers, dogs and potato salad.

Appetizer:

Chunky guacamole

Find out what's happening in Levittownwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

This is a great dip that goes well with your favorite summer beverage

Ingredients:

Find out what's happening in Levittownwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

4 or 5 ripe avocadoes (not too firm)
1/4 cup chopped red onion
3 garlic cloves minced
Chopped jalapeno (ribs, seeds removed) to taste
Juice of two limes
Handful of fresh cilantro, finely chopped
Salt & pepper
Olive oil

Scoop out the meat of the avocadoes and discard the pits. Mash them up, but don’t make it smooth – chunky is good! Mix in the rest of the ingredients, adding salt, pepper and olive oil to taste. Refrigerate for an hour before serving, pressing plastic wrap against the surface in whatever container you use, otherwise, you risk the top turning a bit brown. Serve with your favorite tortilla chips.

Side dishes:

Quick-pickle cucumbers

A great alternative to the mayonnaise-based salads that tend to dominate summer cookouts

6 or 8 mini-cucumbers or 2 longer Asian cucumbers
3/4 cup rice wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
Freshly ground black pepper

Whisk together rice vinegar, sugar and salt. Once everything is dissolved, add pepper, pepper flakes and cucumbers, mixing well to combine. Cover and let sit for at least an hour.

Mango salsa

Another light addition to the menu and a great excuse to enjoy mangoes.

Four ripe mangoes (should be soft), peeled & diced
1/4 red onion, finely chopped
Small handful of fresh cilantro, finely chopped
1 tablespoon scallions, finely chopped
Juice of one lime
2 tablespoons orange juice
1 teaspoon honey
Salt & pepper

How’s this for simple – combine ingredients (salt & pepper to taste, start lightly), then let sit for 30 to 45 minutes. Serve at room temperature.

Main dish:

Grilled pork tenderloin

Simple to cook and a tasty alternative to burgers and dogs

Marinade:

3/4 cup bourbon
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar
3 tablespoons olive oil
5 cloves garlic, minced

Mix it up, making sure the brown sugar is dissolved, and pour it into a big resealable bag. Add your pork tenderloin and make sure it is well-coated, then seal the bag and put in the fridge for about an hour. Take it out and season with salt and pepper. Some folks will tell you to grill it over low heat, which is fine. But you can also put it on a very hot grill, turning it quickly, to get a nice sear on the outside, and then lower the heat to finish cooking. When you take it off the grill (they really don’t take that long), make sure to cover it in foil and let it stand for about 10 minutes to finish cooking.  Don’t slice it too thin, maybe a quarter-inch thick or so.

A fancy summer drink:

Watermelon margaritas

These take a little effort, but are a fun, sweet summer drink. You can do a lot of the prep work well in advance so you can enjoy the drinks with your guests.

5 cups of cubed watermelon
2 tablespoons sugar
Juice of two limes
Tequila
Triple sec

Puree the watermelon and sugar until super-smooth and then pour through a fine mesh strainer. Mix in the lime juice to finish the base before adding tequila and triple sec to taste. You can make this as a batch and put in a pitcher (8 ounces of tequila and 4 ounces of triple sec) or do the drinks individually (the 2:1 tequila to triple sec ratio works well).  Serve over the rocks (if you try to do them frozen, they get too frothy). Salt the rim of the glasses if you’re into that sort of thing.

You can make several batches of the base in advance and just keep it in the fridge until needed.

Now, let the cookouts begin!


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here