When I was a little kid, fireworks bursting high in the star-filled night sky were the most thrilling part of Independence Day. Their brilliant, ever-exploding colors punctuated by deafening booms and the cheering crowd sent me soaring.

As an adult, I still thrill the fireworks, but my greatest joy comes from sharing traditions I’ve built with my family over the years. It all begins on the morning of the Fourth with our very own home-town parade, complete with floats, decorated cars, flag-waving kids, and a profusion of outrageous costumes. Personally, I’m attached to a funky old hat and a pair of sparkly, dangling red star earrings that pinch my ears and make me glad I only wear them once a year. After the last marchers pass by, we eagerly turn our attention to giant picnic baskets filled with homemade fried chicken and all the fixings—made the day before so that I can join in the fun.

With a large, hungry group like mine the key to a no-stress holiday meal is good planning and making as much as possible in advance. Chicken marinated in buttermilk is the traditional star of our Independence Day menu. Add to that an old fashioned picnic-style potato salad with hard-cooked eggs and tarragon, creamy slaw, fluffy, mile-high buttermilk biscuits and my favorite Guinness chocolate cake, and you have the perfect summer celebration meal. Everything is packed in plastic with ice for easy transporting.

Before you tell me that you can’t make fried chicken and would prefer to grab a tub of it at the local fast food place, know that as a novice cook, I could not fry it to save my life. It was dreadful stuff: greasy, overcooked—dark with the breading falling off. I finally got fed up and positively refused to do it ever again. But a few buckets of fast-food cluckers later, I did a little research and discovered that you could marinate the chicken for moistness, fry till golden and then finish it off in the oven. Amazing—what a difference. Now it’s one of my specialties. So give it a try and know the pleasures of this well-loved family favorite.

When we’ve licked the last of the picnic from our fingers and night begins to fall, I bundle up and grab the last standing celebrators and head to the Marin Headlands. There on a clear night one marvels at the beauty of the fog gently blowing through the Gate. Boom! The spectacular show begins as the fireworks soar and burst over San Francisco Bay. It reminds me of what a beautiful place we live in, and how fortunate I am to have great family and friends to share it. Oh, look at that brilliant red, white and blue beauty going off now. A reminder to be thankful for the freedom we often take for granted. Happy Fourth of July!

Get printable copies of my recipes and illustrated, step-by-step how-to’s for your convenience.

Southern Fried Chicken with Gravy

Potato Salad

Slaw

Buttermilk Biscuits

Chocolate Guinness Cupcakes with Chocolate-Cinnamon Frosting

Barbara Adams Blog also appears on the SFGate.

When the outside temperatures soar, I keep my refrigerator well-stocked with pitchers of freshly made Mexican agua frescas. These simple, fresh water drinks are made from fruits, flowers or grains and are the ultimate thirst-quenchers. Unlike American soda pops and commercially prepared drinks and juices, aguas are naturally-flavored and contain no additives, artificial flavors and colors or high fructose corn syrup. Best of all, they are quick to make and you control the sugar. And if that were not enough, they are super easy on the family budget.

I first discovered agua frescas on the street corners of Mexico at little carts that sell brilliantly colored fresh fruit salad in paper bowls and aguas made from ripe, juicy pineapples, strawberries, watermelons, cantaloupes, limes and other local seasonal fruits.

Here in California we are fortunate to have an abundance of produce that’s perfect for these drinks. The very best source for produce is usually your local farmers market or U-pick field—or harvesting in your home garden. If you end up with more than you can use, trade with your friends and family for greater variety and economy.

Traditionally, Mexican home cooks keep a pitcher or two of cool aguas ready for visitors and thirsty family members. Most don’t stress over the ingredients, using whatever they have on hand. How about watermelon and strawberries? Hmmm, what should I add to that aging cantaloupe half?

One of my favorite drinks is agua de horchata, a hugely popular rice water drink flavored with cinnamon and vanilla. It’s so good that it never lasts long at my house. This agua takes a little longer than the simpler fruit mixtures, because you must soak and soften the rice overnight. The next morning, pour it through a strainer, stir in the water and flavor with cinnamon and vanilla. After a few hours in the refrigerator, you’ll have an amazing low cost drink that has everyone coming back for seconds.

As you adventure into the exotic world of aguas, be sure to try agua de Jamaica (ha-MY-ka), made from dried hibiscus flowers. I was introduced to this tangy drink by our Beyond Wonderful International Home Chef, Mexico, Yolanda Resendiz. She whipped up a batch to cool off our team as we worked in a very hot kitchen. It was addictively good and I downed several tall glasses—then realized that hibiscus is a diuretic. Yolanda giggled and waited for me to return from the bathroom again, and again, so that we could finish cooking our latest recipe in development.

Know that as wonderful as agua frescas are, you must use ripe, flavorful peak-season fruits for good results. Never fall into the fantasy trap that something homemade will be delicious no matter what you put in it. Not so. Be vigilant when purchasing your produce, and don’t assume that just because you find something at the farmers market or the organic produce section of your market it will be good. If you don’t know how to select watermelons, cantaloupes or other fruits, ask you farm vendor or produce person for guidance.

Now get ready for a wonderful selection of Mexican agua frescas—some of the best summertime thirst quenchers around. Enjoy!

Agua de Sandia—Mexican Watermelon Water.
It’s hard to resist this brilliantly colored icy drink on a hot day. Bottoms up!

Agua de Melon—Mexican Cantaloupe Water
Who knew that this delicately fragrant, orange melon could tastes so good in a glass?

Agua de Fresa—Mexican Strawberry Water
Pure summer in a glass—ripe strawberries, a little sugar, water and ice—no chemicals, preservatives or flavor enhancers. More, please!

Limonada—Mexican Lime Drink
There is lemonade and there is limonada—a wonderful twist on an old favorite.

Agua de Horchata (or-CHAT-ah) Mexican Rice Water
Inspired by the Aztecs, this popular drink is made from rice and flavored with cinnamon and vanilla. Prepare to discover a new favorite.

Agua de Jamaica (ha-MY-ka)
Jamaica flowers (aka as hibiscus) flavor this exotic drink that is guaranteed to refresh you on a hot summer days.

Agua de Pina—Mexican Pineapple Water
Ripe, juicy pineapples are key for this popular agua. Try it once and expensive processed juices will be a thing of the past.

Get printable copies of these illustrated, step-by-step instructions for your convenience.
How-To Peel a Cantaloupe
How-To Prepare a Pineapple

Grab your salt shaker and get ready for great eating; the early season heirloom tomatoes are arriving in the markets. These brilliantly colored, lumpy-bumpy jewels of summer deliver old-time tomato flavor that puts supermarket hybrids to shame. Heirlooms are amazing eaten out-of-hand with a sprinkling of salt, or showcased in brilliantly colored summer salads, favorite sandwiches and sumptuous savory tarts.

Unlike hybrid tomatoes, heirlooms are grown from open-pollinated seeds carefully collected and passed through generations of growers and their friends. Plants maintain the same taste, color, size, shape and texture characteristics year after year. Hybrids, by contrast, produce few usable seeds. When planted, these hybrid seeds yield inferior plants the first year, and deteriorate further thereafter.

You’ll notice that heirlooms are more expensive than standard supermarket tomatoes and may wonder why. After all, four bucks a pound—and as much as six or more at high-end stores during the season—may seem excessive when one large tomato can weigh a whole pound.

It all centers on profitability. Bred for production and sales, hybrids have thicker skins for best shipping and a longer shelf life. Heirlooms have thinner skins, do not ship well, and must be eaten within several days of harvesting. Their plants produce smaller crops and are prone to diseases like blossom-end rot and early blight. All of this makes heirlooms inherently less profitable, forcing growers to set prices higher to sustain a business. On the positive side, when you find perfectly ripe heirlooms at your local market, they’re likely to be fresh and great-tasting; well worth the extra cost over mediocre supermarket tomatoes.

Currently our cooler Bay Area temperatures and frequent cloud cover has delayed the local heirloom crop, forcing dealers to buy from growers in southern California and Mexico. Our early crops are due soon, to be followed by more varieties that will peak in September.

When shopping for ripe, juicy heirlooms, look for ones with lots of give. Buy only what you can eat in a day or two as they spoil more quickly than their mass-market cousins. And never, never, ever store heirlooms in the refrigerator—they won’t turn into gremlins after midnight, but will lose significant flavor and texture when stored at temperatures under 50 degrees.

Now for the good part—my favorite heirloom recipes. Happy eating!

Heirloom Tomato-
Parmesan Tart
Glorious colors and flavor make this savory summertime tart a showstopper at any meal. Let your imagination run wild and use a rainbow of different varieties to turn ordinary into an edible masterpiece.

Tomato-Basil Bruschetta
The simple eating pleasures of summer—garlic, multi-colored chopped heirlooms, fresh basil and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar… all together on a toasted piece of bread headed right to your mouth.

Insalata Caprese
It’s hard to improve this Italian classic that combines tomatoes with thick slices of best-quality mozzarella cheese and fresh basil—unless you make it with heirlooms. Oh my, sooo good.

BLT Sandwich
Who needs a recipe for this classic? I slather good bread with mayonnaise and a sprinkling of freshly ground black pepper then stack it with thick-cut bacon, colorful sliced heirlooms, whole basil leaves and lettuce. It’s over-the-top delicious.

Tuna Stuffed
Heirloom Tomatoes
There are days when only tuna fish salad sounds good. I love to hollow out and stuff heirlooms with my all-time favorite tuna and then dig in.

Heirloom Tomato
Salad with Basil
Wow your family and friends with this spectacular summer salad. It’s simple yet sophisticated and hard to resist when paired with grilled meats.

Get printable copies of these heirloom tomato recipes for your convenience:

Heirloom Tomato-Parmesan Tart

Tomato-Basil Bruschetta

Insalata Caprese

Tuna Stuffed Heirloom Tomatoes

Heirloom Tomato Salad with Basil

Nothing screams summer like ice-cold watermelon on a blistering hot day. As kids, my brother and I loved cooling off by running through the backyard sprinkler, then devouring huge chunks of crunchy pinky-red melon under the big shade tree out back. We were young and thought nothing of diving in face first, then spitting black seeds at each other as we reappeared. My mother was not amused.

Today, “the girls”—my BFF’s—are coming for lunch in the garden. Feeling a bit nostalgic, I’m making my favorite Mediterranean salad that pairs icy sweet watermelon with mild, salty feta cheese, Kalamata  olives, thin slices of purple onion, and a generous sprinkling of freshly chopped mint. A simple dressing of fresh lime juice and extra virgin olive oil tops it all off. It’s at once sophisticated, easy to assemble and delicious. And if you’re feeling creative, you can halve and hollow out several small, round watermelons and slice the bottom off to stabilize them on a plate. Fill each with salad and decorate with a mint sprig. It’s pure summer on a plate.

As simple as this salad is, it requires best-quality ingredients, especially a perfectly ripe watermelon. I don’t know about you but searching though huge bins of these beauties at the market always overwhelmed me in the past. After all, how was I supposed to know which ones were ripe? There was no scent, and color offered no clues. I hate to tell you how many times I ended up with a mediocre pinky-white, flavorless melon. Then I learned the secret of selection from Beyond Wonderful produce expert, Dan Avakian.

First be brave; walk right up to the bin and look for a couple of potential favorites. Reject anything that is damaged or has soft spots. Now put both hands on one, like you’re going to give it a shoulder massage. If it “gives” or springs back slightly, it’s ready. But let’s be doubly sure. Pick it up and hold the watermelon in one hand and run your thumbnail across the top of the melon. If the green “peels” slightly, it is ripe. This is because the rind starts breaking down when it is ripe and beyond. A “green” or unripe watermelon will not peel when scratched.

I told Dan that I had read one should thump watermelons to test for ripeness. He laughed and said, “you can thump or slap them, but it doesn’t guarantee ripeness. If you must do it, listen for a thud that vibrates.” Dan swears by the thumbnail test and so do I. Give it a try the next time you’re in the market.

Back in the kitchen, I grabbed my sharp, trusty chef’s knife and cut into the watermelon. Score! It was a beautifully ripe, pinky-red and very juicy melon—perfect for my salad. Cutting watermelons is easy when you know this technique:

Later at lunch, one of my friends admitted that she was a bit apprehensive about combining feta cheese and olives with watermelon, but was determined to try it. After one bite she exclaimed “perfection! Who knew? It’s absolutely exquisite.” I agreed, and continued to savor my salad politely with knife and fork. Mother would be proud.

Get a printable copy my Watermelon, Feta, and Kalamata Olive Salad and illustrated, step-by-step instructions for How To Slice Watermelons.