Fun, Festive Food Ideas for the 4th of July

Looking for some great food ideas for the 4th of July? You’ve come to the right spot! Below are some ideas you can use to make your 4th of July celebration fun and festive with food!

Flag Cake

1. Make a 13x9 cake using your favorite cake recipe (can be from a box mix too, any flavor)
2. Frost with white frosting (cream cheese or vanilla)
3. Use blueberries to make the stars of the flag in the upper left corner
4. Use strawberries to make the red stripes on the flag
5. For added spark (pun intended) add a few sparklers!

Red, White and Blue Cupcakes

1. Make your favorite flavor cupcakes
2. Divide white frosting into thirds. Color 1/3 with red food coloring and 1/3 with blue food coloring.
3. Frost each cupcake, alternating colors.
4. You can make little flags on each cupcake using the red, white and blue frosting.
5. Get little flags or sparklers to stick in the center of each cupcake


Need some ideas for lunch or dinner? Try these easy to make, yet fun food ideas!

Red, White and Blue Potato Salad – Use new red potatoes, white baby potatoes and blue or purple potatoes in your favorite potato salad recipe. (Leave the skins on the red and blue potatoes.)

Grilled Hamburgers with Bacon – Mix hamburger with chopped onion and Worcetershire sauce, form 1 inch thick patties and wrap each patty with a slice of bacon, securing it with a toothpick. Grill on each side about 5 to 7 minutes. Top with your favorite burger toppings.

Festive Steak Fajitas – Using grilled skirt steak, red and yellow bell peppers, onions and your favorite toppings like shredded cheese, lettuce and tomatoes, fold together in a warmed tortilla. A colorful main course that can be served with guacamole, refried beans and Spanish rice!

Faux Fried Chicken – It looks like fried chicken, but it’s baked-healthy and delicious! Dip pat-dried chicken drumsticks in a mixture of buttermilk and your favorite seasonings and roll each of them in a crushed Cornflakes cereal mixed with Parmesan cheese. Bake in the oven at 425 degrees for 40 minutes, or until the chicken is done. Serve with your favorite side dishes like corn on the cob and mashed potatoes! Great summertime meal, perfect for a Fourth of July celebration!


Here are a couple of festive, cool desserts or treats you can serve on the fourth. These are sure to please family and guests of all ages!

Frosted Fireworks – Using red and blue flavored beverages, such as Kool-aid or Gatorade, pour into ice cube trays and freeze. Place some red, blue and clear cubes in a festive dessert glass and pour seltzer (flavored if you prefer) over the colored ice cubes. Toss in a little flag for added festiveness.

Red, White and Blue Fruit Salad – Toss diced apples, strawberries and blueberries into a mixture of honey, lime juice and fresh, chopped mint. Serve as a side dish with any entrée or use as a topping over vanilla ice cream.

These ideas will make for a festive, fun and colorful addition to any 4th of July Celebration.


Red, White and Blue Food Ideas

Are you planning a smashing 4th of July party, but don’t want to serve the traditional burgers or chicken? Here are some simple, yet very festive food ideas using red, white and blue. Use a combination of the following food ideas to create a red, white and blue 4th of July Feast.

Red Foods

Main Course: New Mexico Style Red Enchiladas

Brown some ground beef, drain. In a large skillet, combine a large can of red enchilada sauce and 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil. In a separate skillet warm tortillas until just flexible. Then dip each tortilla in the enchilada sauce. Next, make layers starting with a dipped tortilla then add a couple of spoonfuls of meat, a couple of spoonfuls of the enchilada sauce. Top with shredded cheese. Repeat, making as many layers as you‘d like, but a good amount is usually 3. Top it all off with a fried egg and serve with a dinner roll. (Trust me!)

Salad: Summer Tomato Salad

Using not-too-ripe, coarsely chopped tomatoes and cherry tomatoes combine with chopped basil and parsley leaves. Drizzle Extra Virgin Olive Oil and toss.

Appetizer: 4th of July Apples

Combine an 8 oz. pkg. of cream cheese, 3 tbs. butter-softened, ½ cup of crumbled blue cheese, ½ cup chopped walnuts. Refrigerate for 3 hours. Core and cut apples into eighths and sprinkle with lemon juice. Use a butter knife to apply spread to apples.

Blue Foods

Main Course: Blue Catfish Fillets

Dip catfish fillets (patted almost dry) in ¾ cup blue cornmeal with finely chopped jalapeno pepper, 2 cloves of garlic and ½ tsp. salt. Heat one inch of oil in large skillet and fry the fillets until brown on each side and the fish begins to flake inside. Serve salsa, or lemon or lime wedges.

Salad: Blue Potato Salad

Using ½ lb. Peruvian fingerlings (blue potatoes), boil until soft, but not mushy. Gently mix in 2 tbsp. grainy mustard, ¼ cup white wine vinegar, 3 thinly sliced celery stalks, 2 tbsp. minced flat leaf parsley and 2 sliced green onions. Makes 8 servings.

Appetizer: Blue Cheese Ball

Using 3 (3-oz each) pkgs. cream cheese, 1 (4-oz) pkg. blue cheese, crumbled,1 jar Kraft Old English cheese spread, 1 small onion, grated finely, 2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce, Mix all together. Form into two balls, medium size then wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight. Roll in chopped nuts. Serve with Blue Corn Tortilla Chips

Dessert: Blue Ice Cream

Scoop vanilla ice cream into a parfait bowl or other clear dessert cup. Add some blueberry syrup, fresh blueberries, another scoop of ice cream, some more blueberry syrup and top with whipped cream.

White Foods

Main course: Pork Steak in Mushroom Sauce

You can make this in the oven or in a crock pot. I prefer the crock pot because the pork comes out so tender! Place 6 to 8 boneless pork steak in crock pot; let cook for 2 hours on high. Add 2 cans of cream of mushroom soup, 2 cans of cream of celery soup and cook for 2 more hours on high. To bake in the oven, place the pork steak in a 13x9 glass baking dish, top with the cans of soup and cover with aluminum foil. Bake on 350F for an hour to an hour ½. Top with shredded cheese, if desired.

Salad: White Pineapple Salad

Drain 1 large can pineapple and reserve juice; add enough water to the juice to make 2 cups. Heat to a boil and add Jello, mix until dissolved. Chill until thick as syrup. Mash 2-8 oz. pkgs. cream cheese and add to Jello mixture. Mix well with mixer. Add ½ pt. whipped cream and 1 cup crushed nuts, mix well. Pour into a 9x 12 dish and chill well.

Appetizer: White Pizza Bagel Bites

Using 1 pkg. frozen bagel bites, place on cookie sheet, cut side up. Sprinkle with garlic powder and bake until lightly toasted. Top with shredded mozzarella cheese, sliced olives and chopped green pepper. Bake for 5 more minutes, until cheese is melted.

Dessert: All American Cup Cakes

Make cupcakes using your favorite recipe, top with white frosting. Make a flag on each one using blueberries for the stars and red licorice pieces for the stripes.