These patriotic snacks are great for 4th of July festivities or any day! The recipes use lots of in-season berries to encourage fresh and local eating. Kids can be very hands-on with these recipes!

Patriotic Flag Snack

Ingredients:

Strawberries (sliced) or use red fruit roll-ups

Blueberries

Cream cheese (or cool whip)

Graham crackers

Directions:

1. Have kids assemble the flag by spreading the cream cheese or cool whip onto one side of the graham cracker.
2. Add 4-6 blueberries in the top right corner of the graham cracker (horizontally) as “stars.”
3. Add the sliced strawberries (or red fruit roll-ups cut lengthwise into strips) in rows for the “stripes,” leaving some white cream cheese/cool whip showing in between rows.

Firecracker Dogs

An adorable festive take on traditional “pigs-in-a-blanket”!

Ingredients:

2 packages of 16 hot dogs each

1 can refrigerated breadstick dough

16 thick slices of Colby jack or cheddar cheese (from the deli)

16 wooden skewers

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350° and line a baking sheet with parchment paper (or silpat liner).
2. Skewer hot dogs all the way through lengthwise, leaving about 1.5 inch of skewer sticking out of the top (for later adding the cheese star).
3. Carefully wrap the hot dog with a strip of breadstick dough (leaving a little hot dog exposed all the way as it wraps around).
4. Place wrapped hot dogs on the lined baking sheet and bake according to the breadstick dough package instructions.
5. We recommend purchasing extra thick cheese slices from your grocer’s deli to get thick slices about ¼”-three-eighths inches thick, or cutting them from a block yourself. Using the star cookie cutter, cut out star shapes.
6. After the hot dogs have baked and cooled, add the star cheese to the top of the skewer.
7. Display standing up in a Mason jar and serve with lines of ketchup “stripes!”

Red White & Blue Fruit Salsa with Cinnamon Sugar Star Chips

Ingredients:

Whole wheat soft tortillas

Star cookie cutter

2 Tbsp. melted butter

½ cup sugar

1 Tbsp. cinnamon

1 cup raspberries (optional)

½ cup strawberries, chopped

¼ cup red apples, chopped

¼ cup blueberries

¼ cup seedless raspberry or strawberry jam

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400°.

2. Using the star cookie cutter, cut star shapes out of the tortillas.
3. Spread out stars on a baking sheet and brush them with melted butter.
4. In a small bowl, stir cinnamon and sugar together and sprinkle generously onto tortilla stars.
5. Bake tortillas until crispy, about 5 minutes.
6. Toss chopped fruit and jam together. Serve with the star chips!