• The Fourth of July has passed, but don't let that keep you from fixing these red, white, and blue parfaits
• Trying to find that elusive farmers' market in the Boston area? Try looking here
• A former Independence Day tradition is now marred by ecological and health concerns
• Cornmeal-buttermilk blueberry biscuits would be perfect dotted with a little butter and paired with an ice cold coffee
• Serve this fennel coleslaw alongside your favorite grilled items
• Next time you're eating and drinking on the go, grab a Flatterware Collapsible Cup from Uncommon Goods, made from BPA-free plastic.

Well, the Fourth of July has come and gone once more, and that means so has one more Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest. According to Sports Illustrated online, the whole thing was quite a spectacle, and lots of fun.

The contest this year was won by American Joey Chestnut (not pictured*). A crowd of 35,000 watched and cheered, and apparently had to be entertained for about five hours before the actual contest. SI reported that there was a trampoline duo, a rock band from New Jersey, the "Bun-ette" cheerleaders, an actual on stage marriage, and a side contest for the kids (whoever stayed the cleanest while eating a hot dog won).

Sounds like quite a way to spend your Independence Day. The author of the article commented that most people only go to the contest once, and that's enough. I think I'd fall into that category. What are your thoughts on that?

*Update: that actually is Joey Chestnut.

I know champagne isn't really that popular a Fourth of July beverage, but what about one that's red, white and blue?

Pommery is offering a real French Champagne, but the bottle is designed with red and white stripes and a blue area that has stars on it. The bottle is topped in silver foil, and looks quite nice. The post over on Cool Hunting that has the best image of the bubbly.

Pommery is aiming this Champagne, called Pop America, squarely at those in the US. Why, I'm not quite sure, but it comes in mini bottles at $15 each. The smaller size and reasonable price make this a good candidate for your patriotic party.

The Grand Rapids Press has a list of several dozen beef, chicken vegetable and fish tips for your Independence Day bash. Try wrapping fish in prosciutto or bacon to prevent drying. And cook snapper and other delicate fish in foil or on a plank so it doesn't fall apart.

Hawaii's KGMB has a video of Tyler Florence making a grilled pork tenderloin for a big 4th of July cookout. He suggests stocking up at a wholesale club like Sam's to save when feeding a crowd.

BBQ.about.com has chicken, pork and beef brisket recipes, with ideas for kebabs, potato salads, ice tea, sangria, and something called 'flag fudge.'

Nashville's WSMV teaches you how to build a top notch grilling station, from grills to spatulas to thermometers to lighter fluid.

Kalyn's Kitchen has some cool 'think outside the burger' ideas special for the 4th: grilled shish kabobs with whole wheat pita and tzatziki, grilled salmon with maple syrup glaze, grilled chicken with tarragon mustard marinade, grilled tri-tip with salsa.

Epicurious has a bunch of burger ideas: Feta burgers with grilled red onions, jalapeno burgers, open face lamb burgers with mint yogurt sauce, buffalo burgers with pickled onions and smoky pepper sauce, sun-dried tomato burgers with balsamic-glazed onions, porcini-Gorgonzola burgers with veal demi-glace, tamarind-glazed turkey
burgers, sesame tuna burgers....

Also on Epicurious: A complete guide to grilling. Rubs and marinade recipes, technique tips, how to test for doneness, where to taste the best regional barbecue. With input from grill guru Steve Raichlen.

Martha Stewart has a very tasteful (naturally) Fourth of July menu. Check out the ribs.

Global Gourmet has another grilling guide. Check out its rundown of recipes from their favorite grilling cookbooks. Whoopi Goldberg's Big Bad Ass Beef Ribs, anyone?

Even vegetarians get in on the grilling action, at Vegetarians in Paradise, with recipes for Independence Day grilled tempeh steak, grilled veggie skewers, grilled red onions and grilled corn on the cob.

It's only July 3rd and my foodie forefathers have already dished out plenty of Independence Day eats in such posts as American Flag Cakes and Delicious Foods for July 4th. But let's be honest: There is no food or cake that can rival the great American tradition of getting rip-roaring drunk. Even Uncle Sam's cheeks wear a warm flush!

But tradition aside, I do not condone drinking to excess, so I have devised a list of patriotic cocktails that are too lovely to chug. In the words of the great George Washington as he crossed the Delaware: Take it slow, kids, take it slow.

1. Starfruit and Stripes Daiquiri - The fine folks at MaisonBisson came up with this capital idea: Take a traditional strawberry daiquiri, top it with whipped cream and blueberries, then garnish with a slice of starfruit. Ta da! Liquid flag!
2. Red, White and Blue Sangria - Punctuate some white sangria with blueberries and raspberries for that good ol' U.S. of A. color scheme.
3. Boston Pops Martini - This Massachusetts-made martini celebrates the famed Boston Pops' national independence day broadcast. The true fireworks begin with the rim that's dipped in - what else? - Pop Rocks!
4. Red, White and Blue Shot - Although there are a number of variations on this popular Fourth of July shooter, the key is a careful pour to ensure those colors don't run.
5. Patriotic Margarita - The arbiters of blue vodka put their hued booze to good use with this layered margarita: HPNOTIQ 'rita, topped with strawberry 'rita, dressed up with a coconut rim.
6. Red, White and Blue beers - According to the results of this poll, beer is the bev of choice for cookouts. So if you want to keep with the patriotic theme, stock up on PBR (in the unmistakable red, white, and blue can) or for something a bit classier, invest in an assortment of Chimay Red, Chimay White, and Chimay Blue.

If you are declaring an independence from alcohol, whip up one of these constitutions:

1. Patriotic Tea Punch - Try out this tart punch that boasts an iced tea base, pomegranate juice, and gobs of fresh fruit.
2. Bomb Pop Mocktail - This red, white, and blue pousse-cafe layers cranberry juice, blue Gatorade, and diet 7-up to mimic everyone's favorite patriotic popsicle.

Have a festive Fourth, everyone!

Independence Day, or the Fourth of July, is coming up. It's time to get out the picnic-safe salad recipes and clean the grill. While you're at it, don't forget the patriotic desserts! Here are some ideas on what you can do to end your Fourth of July meal with a bang!

1. Here's a neat idea from Imperial Sugar, with a recipe and everything.
2.I know I said cakes, but these patriotic Jello creations are worth a mention!
3. A beautiful flag from Cakeism.
4. Dish'n'That has a fun example for you.
5.How about flag cupcakes?
6. This one from a Chick Chat contest is awesome. You have to scroll down a bit, but it's the topsy turvy, multi-tiered one from RockStarMommy.
7. No instructions on this rice crispy treat flag, but I'm sure you could figure it out!
8. How about something a little different? An Uncle Sam Ice cream cone, perhaps?

For ten summers, I attended an all girls sleep-away camp in the Pocono Mountains. For seven years as a camper and three years as a counselor, I lived for sticky poolside days and cool nights snuggling around the campfire. I loved every minute of camp. Even when the job wheel sentenced me to toilet duty or I lost count of the number of mosquito bites on my left leg alone, I would swear there wasn't a happier girl in the world.

Camp is so wonderful because of traditions: uniforms on Friday nights, banquet at the end of each summer, songs for every emotion, occasion, and weather condition. Camp food traditions are a category on their own: S'mores and bug juice are a given, but I'll never forget the plates of ice cream we'd get once each summer, the best grilled cheese in the world, and donuts and Firecracker popsicles on the Fourth of July.

Now I know that it's popular to eat this frozen treat every year on that day, but when I was younger, I remember thinking how brilliant it was that camp had found these beautiful and delicious red, white, and blue popsicles to serve in celebration They were left out after lunch, and I could barely get through morning activities in anticipation. We always had to debate which flavor (red cherry, white lemon, or blue raspberry) was tastiest, and I always chose lemon, struggling to lick the top and bottom of the popsicle first to save the middle for last.

Sometimes during the summer, I see them when I'm food shopping. I wonder if they taste the same, and I consider purchasing a box. But then I pass them over, knowing that the memory of licking them with friends on dining hall steps is all the sweet I need.

After the jump a pictorial essay of food and people on the Fourth of July.

American Joey Chestnut won the annual Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest today at Coney Island. He got down 66 hot dogs and rolls in 12 minutes. But defending champ Takeru Kobayashi, even though he was injured with a sore jaw and pain from an extracted wisdom tooth, still gave Chestnut some competition. He ate 63 hot dogs and buns in 12 minutes, his best showing ever but not enough to beat the new champ.

Hopefully you read this after you had your Fourth of July hot dogs. Congratulations Joey!

If you haven't started your cookout yet, maybe this is something you'd like to try: Hershey's Chocolate Barbecue Sauce!

It comes from Charlie Gipe, the executive chef at Hershey's and sounds like maybe a pop food version of mole sauce. You use four cups of Hershey's chocolate syrup, which sounds like a lot, but there is also four whole lemons and vinegar so I'm sure that balances the flavor. Full recipe after the jump.

Happy Fourth of July!

Holidays always give us an excuse to eat badly. We always say that it's OK that we're eating cheeseburgers and drinking beer because we'll start exercising and eating well - seriously! - on July 5. At least that's what I'll be saying today when I have cheeseburgers and beer.

So what are you eating? Are you going to a cookout? Are you having a cookout yourself? Are you going to the movies instead to see Live Free and Die Hard and eating popcorn and candy? If you need some ideas, check out some of our recipes for the Fourth, including Thomas Jefferson's Ice Cream, Hamburgers with Herb Butter, Grilled Korean Marinated Ribs, Roasted Fig, and varous red, white and blue desserts.

So what's the best way to celebrate both the Fourth of July and National Ice Cream Month? Recreate the recipe from one of our forefathers, of course.

Best Life magazine has the recipe for Thomas Jefferson's Ice Cream. It only has four ingredients (heavy cream, eggs, sugar, and a vanilla bean) but who says that ice cream has to be complex? Though the actual preparation is a little bit more involved than the four ingredients would have you believe, it's great to see a recipe with such basic ingredients.

But it has eggs. Oh oh. I wonder if Andy Rooney would approve?

Wednesday is the Fourth of July, and we continue to bring you some recipes that you might want to try if you're having a cookout or party that day. AOL Food has a recipe from Steven Raichlen for Hamburgers with Herb Butter. There are a couple of more steps than you're probably used to when cooking burgers.The pancetta and white cheddar cheese sound like really nice touches.

I don't know who this "Herb Butter" guy is, but this sounds great. Full recipe after the jump.

What says "Fourth of July" more than the red, white, and blue of our flag?

Pastrywiz.com has a complex yet interesting recipe to make the above, a Flag Cake, a big cake that actually looks like our national symbol, stars and stripes and all. It's the perfect end to a family cookout or something to serve for when the fireworks are over. I can just imagine whipping this thing out and really making an impression on my guests.

Or maybe you don't want to make an entire cake. Maybe you just want something smaller and more individual for each of your guests on your kids. After the jump, a variation you might want to try.

Earlier this week I did a post about my love of iced tea. Not real iced tea, but the fake instant stuff with tons of sugar and lemon. A lot of people couldn't understand how I could like the fake stuff. But I stand by my taste.

However, I feel as if I should give the opposing view too, and since it's almost July 4 and it's already hot and humid, how about a list of several different iced teas? I'm pretty sure there's something here for everyone, whether you want non-alcoholic iced tea or something with a little extra kick.