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Jul 3, 2018 By Joe Carei for The 4 min read

Growing up, we were patriotic but usually succumbed to procrastination. So maybe a flag was out, sometimes bunting and other times we would go all out. Some years, my dad would bring home fireworks, such as bottle rockets and firecrackers, but mostly it would be sparklers.

Mostly, though, we partied on the Fourth of July. My parents, for many years, hosted picnics at our house. We had a log cabin with a yard that was very receptive for big groups. In those days, you didn’t need a theme, just a reason — the Fourth of July was a pretty good one. We would have what seemed like hundreds of people in and out. At dusk, we would form a caravan to head to the fireworks, on the outside of town. When the fireworks were over, the party was not. Sometimes I would wake up on the fifth of July and there would still be a couple of people still talking in the yard. And there was always someone sleeping on the picnic table, usually a Dean boy (there were 5).

I can remember the people and characters. Mr. McGeever manned the grill, making the burgers. He insisted his were the best. But, I felt he put too many onions in it. Mr. Lynch kept an eye on the keg. HeÄ¢¹½ÊÓƵ Irish of course. Mr. Rizzo always had a small crowd around him telling them stories. The Kings and Fergusons brought truckloads of food as they had truckloads of kids. Everybody had tons of kids. Mr. Hendrickson, whom I thought was sooo big, but in todayÄ¢¹½ÊÓƵ standards he would have just been stout, would always get the football going. Mr. Kepler would show up with whatever hot rod he was building, so he never arrived quietly.

With this group, we really never needed a flag out front, we didn’t need to overdo it, because these guys had all served in WW2, Korea and Vietnam. Say something bad about America, the president or apple pie, and you better start running.

And the food … we had a table that my dad made that must have been 12 feet long. It was groaning because of the amount of food on it. There was every type of side dish and salad. Joining hot dogs and hamburgers was the seven layer salad, ambrosia, hot chicken salad, deviled eggs, pulled pork, tomato pie, fruit salad, Watergate salad, blackberry pies and the list goes on. There was no sanitation rules, so you would eat food that was out for 7 years. Nothing was kid friendly (hot dogs), no one got sick and everyone was happy.

So pull your summer party together. Whether it is the Fourth of July, July 20 or Aug. 8, all of these recipes work for any picnic.

Deviled eggs

6 hard boiled eggs

3 tablespoon mayo

1 teaspoon mustard

½ teaspoons prepared horseradish

½ teaspoon chopped dill

Salt and pepper

Paprika

Halve the eggs lengthwise and scoop out yolks into bowl. Mash the yolks and mix with rest of ingredients. Adjust taste with salt and pepper. Spoon or pipe with pastry bag into egg white halves and garnish with paprika. For Fourth of July celebrations, you can color the egg whites like you do Easter eggs. Place some into blue die and some red and keep some white and you have red, white and blue deviled eggs.

Seven-layered salad

1 head iceburg lettuce, chopped or shredded

12-oz bag frozen peas

1 medium red onion, chopped

½ pound bacon rendered, crispy

1 cucumber or 3 stalks celery, chopped

4 hard boiled eggs, coarsely chopped

1½ cups shredded cheddar cheese

Dressing

½ cup mayonnaise

½ cup sour cream

2 tablespoons sugar

Salt and pepper

Mix ingredients adjust taste with salt and pepper

Layer the salad preferably in a glass see through bowl, so you can see each layer. Layer it as you see fit. I have listed as I would layer it, but my mom put bacon on top. Let sit in fridge covered overnight for best flavor.

Blackberry pie

3 1/2 cups blackberries

1 cup sugar

3 tablespoons flour

1 tablespoon grated lemon zest

4 tablespoons butter

Combine flour, sugar and zest . Toss with the berries. Using your favorite pie dough, line a 9″ pie tin. Dot with 2 tablespoons of butter. Pour in berry mix and dot with remaining butter. Cover with pie dough or a top lattice crust. Bake for 40 minutes at 375 degrees.

Hot Chicken Salad

3 cups cubed cooked chicken

1 cup chopped artichoke hearts

1 stalk celery diced

1 cup mayonnaise

¼ cup sour cream

1 teaspoon mustard

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon ground pepper

1 sleeve of butter crackers

1½ cup of shredded mozzarella or cheddar

Mix all ingredients except for cracker and cheese. Press in to buttered 9-by-13-inch casserole pan. Top with cheese and then crushed crackers. Cover and bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees.