Seasonal Sundays (Week 27) Low-Key Celebrations

A collection of recipes for low-key summer celebrations, little fuss and few fireworks, just a few of summer's best recipe ideas for small gatherings, even just the small family units of two and four that hold us together right now. Happy Canada Day, dear Canadians. Happy 4th of July, fellow Americans. And Happy Summer, to all of us ...

~ Skip Straight to the Good Stuff ~

Welcome to Seasonal Sundays ...

It should be a big week in North America, Canada Day for Canadians on July 1st and Independence Day for Americans on July 4th.

But in the year that is 2020, even "big" weeks are lower-key, more casual and dare I say, more relaxing? more chill? and perhaps more contemplative?

For most of us (because we are keeping things small and safe, right???), 2020's holidays will be less about occasion and more about simply duding up the ordinary. No travel. No festivals. No parades. No pool parties. No fireworks. So be it. This shall pass, in due time.

And maybe there's upside, if we stop mourning what isn't and appreciate what is.

And maybe, as my mind veers to the split, separated and smoldering state of these not-so-very United States, I seek to see light through our cracks, crevasses and craters.

Maybe it's good to break from the traditional revelry of other years, from what we've always done, from mindlessly repeating the past, from all the made-in-China flags and bunting, from all the declarations of division and divide.

Maybe 2020 is a gift that opens up room to think and re-think who we are as a community of human beings who have no choice but to inhabit common space, from the planet itself to our very neighborhoods. To consider what we ask of our country and our employers and our economy and our relatives and our media and our friends (and ... and ... and ...) and yes, most especially, ourselves.

Just planting a seed of a thought ... a small, determined and hopeful red, white and blue flag, waving in the wind, seeking ... ... ... ... ...

About the Photo By Popular Request, a Little Insight into the Top Image: I'm a child of the US-Canadian border, my parents' living room literally looks across a river from the US into Canada. There's an international bridge connecting the towns (and state/province and countries) on either side but when we were kids, we swam/boated across the river in summer and skated/snowmobiled in winter. Border? What border? And besides ... my mother was Canadian and all the relatives on that side live in the homeplace of Winnipeg or stretch from Vancouver to Out East. So for me, it's two Thanksgivings in the fall (one in October and one in November) and two national holidays in summer (just days apart).

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PICK ONE

Pick One is for those of us overwhelmed by life's unending choices. If that resonates, then check out this one recipe and then call it a day. It's one that I think could make the most difference, the one I hope will become a regular in your kitchen, as it is in mine.

• THE RECIPE Chicken Greek Salad with Simple Hummus A Quick Supper, just assemble and serve, another good reason to eat at home!
• ANOTHER TAKE Mexican Chicken Salad Rotisserie chicken tossed with lime-yogurt vinaigrette, black beans, jicama, corn and tomato.

Compliments! (Blush ...)

• "I adore this recipe and find I am asked for the recipe whenever I share this. Thank you for sharing this gift with us." ~ Mary
• THE RECIPE Mom's Blueberry Coffeecake A family favorite, for good reasons.
• ANOTHER TAKE Raspberry (or Blueberry) Morning Cake A fruity coffee cake.

Summer Easy: Less Cookin', More Livin'.

More than a decade ago, I started collecting a certain style of summer dishes that espouse my summer motto, Less Cookin', More Livin'. These are Kitchen Parade's most simple, most fresh, most memorable and most summery recipes, all in one place. I hope you love 'em all!

• THE COLLECTION Easy Summer Recipes

Fresh Ideas for Low-Key Summer Celebrations

• THE RECIPE Bloody Caesar (Canada's Bloody Mary)
• ANOTHER TAKE Bloody Mary Salad

• THE RECIPE Old-Fashioned Homemade Lemonade How to make real lemonade with a simple technique that extracts extra flavor from the lemon peels.
• ANOTHER TAKE Cucumber Lemonade

• THE RECIPE Crazy-Smooth Crazy-Good Hummus
• ANOTHER TAKE Red Pepper Hummus

• THE RECIPE Grilled Vegetables in Foil Who says a grill is just for meat?
• ANOTHER TAKE Grilled New-Potato & Zucchini Kabobs With easy beef kabobs, on & off the grill in 20 minutes.

• THE RECIPE Red, White & Blue Potato Salad With red, white and purple potatoes.
• ANOTHER TAKE Mom's Potato Salad All the tricks for great potato salad.

• THE RECIPE Quinoa & Black Bean Salad Transport straight back to Deep Mexico!
• ANOTHER TAKE Ina Garten's Tabbouleh Salad It has a secret ingredient!

• THE RECIPE Easy Garlic-Herb Mediterranean Chicken ("Med Chicken") A real crowd pleaser!
• ANOTHER TAKE Grilled Balsamic Chicken Start in the oven, finish on the grill.

• THE RECIPE Baked Baby Back Ribs with Spicy Berry Sauce
• ANOTHER TAKE Tropical Pork Tenderloin

• THE RECIPE Canadian Flag Cake A festive cake emblazed with the Canadian maple leaf in strawberries.
• ANOTHER TAKE Butter Tart Bars Small bites of Canadian nostalgia.

• THE RECIPE Two-Bite Brownies Moist, chocolate-y brownies, just two bites big. Served, if you like, in a festive watermelon boat.
• ANOTHER TAKE Perfect M&M Cookies With red, white and blue M&Ms or red and white Smarties

What's New?!

• THE RECIPE Chicken Burgers with Fresh Spinach, Feta and Garden Tzatziki Sauce Summery Greek-style chicken sandwich with chunky Greek tzatziki.
• ANOTHER TAKE Jerusalem Turkey Burgers with Zucchini Moist, flavorful burgers specked with grated zucchini and fresh herbs.

• THE RECIPE Cauliflower Refrigerator Pickles
• ANOTHER TAKE Refrigerator Pickled Beets

Just Updated!

• THE RECIPE Greek Chicken Dagwood Sandwiches A towering sandwich, summer style.
• ANOTHER TAKE Chicken Burgers with Fresh Spinach, Feta and Garden Tzatziki Sauce

• THE RECIPE Easy-Easy Roasted Zucchini
• ANOTHER TAKE Easy-Easy Barely Roasted Zucchini & Yellow Squash

• THE RECIPE Asparagus Tapenade
• ANOTHER TAKE Beet Pesto

• THE RECIPE Greens with Sour Cream
• ANOTHER TAKE Greek Greens (Flash Cook to Eat Later)

Text Me Back!

I'd love to hear from you. Comment, send me a quick e-mail via recipes@kitchen-parade.com, dot-dash in Morse code, build a fire for smoke signals, launch a message in a bottle, send a Christmas letter, get the dog to yip, toss me a note wrapped in a rubberband, write a message in the sky, scratch a note in the sand, listen to a seashell, whatever.

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Kitchen Parade is written by second-generation food columnist Alanna Kellogg and features fresh, seasonal dishes for every-day healthful eating and occasional indulgences. Quick Suppers are Kitchen Parade favorites and feature recipes easy on the budget, the clock, the waistline and the dishwasher. Do you have a favorite recipe that other Kitchen Parade readers might like? Just send me a quick e-mail via recipes@kitchen-parade.com. How to print a Kitchen Parade recipe. Never miss a recipe! If you like this recipe, sign up for a free e-mail subscription. If you like Kitchen Parade, you're sure to like my food blog about vegetable recipes, too, A Veggie Venture. If you make this recipe, I'd love to know your results! Just leave a comment below.

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2020