We have an American-Dutch home which can be very interesting when it comes to food, drink, social customs and day to day life. But, when it comes to the 4th of July, we pretty much agree that it is a classic day to celebrate our American-ness and all that it means…so we barbecue ribs, invite family over, friends drop by, we make fun summer cocktails, enjoy ice cold beer from our local Yazoo brewery, go to the Farmer’s Market for fresh, local blackberries to make desserts with, and generally spend the day, July 4th, doing all things American, together.

Homemade ice cream is about as traditional as it gets, but this year I also made a Blackberry Clafouti. This is a baked fruit & custard dessert that is traditionally made with Cherries. Clafouti recipes can easily be found on line at many sites such as Epicurious. You only need a few ingredients and a small amount of time to create a wonderful dessert with your favorite berries or fruit.

We gathered all our tables & chairs in the backyard, strung twinkle lights from the trees, cleaned the grill, chilled down wine and beer, cooked, set up the bar and had a great time with it all……

And we did have Beef & Pork Ribs, Yukon Gold Potato Salad, Simple Baked Beans, Thinly sliced Watermelon Radishes,  Cucumber & Pine Nuts Salad, Stuffed Eggs, Tofu Shredded Lettuce & Baby Eggplant Salad, Homemade Spicy Pickles, Homemade Blackberry Ice Cream & Blackberry Clafouti…..all of us bringing something to the table.

After dinner Jason over saw our backyard/parking lot/alley fireworks display and then after dark around 9:30 pm we strolled from our house to a neighborhood area that we all gather at each year to watch the big downtown Nashville Riverfront 4th of July fireworks show. The night cooled off, a breeze blew up from the Cumberland, we all relaxed on the grass and had a great ending to a historic day.

Happy July 2010!