Happy Fourth of July!!

Today I went to my aunt's house for a little holiday barbecue. It wouldn't be a family gathering without someone climbing on the roof of a trailer, so after dinner (and a few drinks), we climbed up and jumped over to the roof of the house to watch fireworks. Since it rained earlier, it was still a little humid out and I felt like I was in Florida with the other half of my family. It was the perfect way to spend my night.

My aunt and uncle were grilling up hamburgers so I decided to bring a couple dishes over. I brought sweet potato burgers, grilled veggies, and watermelon salad. It went perfectly with their burgers, beans, corn and potato salad. My sweet potato burgers had a crispy crust and a Southwest flavor and would be awesome with some sliced avocado (which I brought, but forgot to use). Even people who were devout meat eaters said they were great. I also made another Red, White and Blue cake (from my last post) and my aunt made red velvet cupcakes. So yummy. Here's my recipes!!

Southwest Sweet Potato Burgers
2 large sweet potatoes, shredded
1/2 onion, diced
1 can black beans, slightly mashed
1 can vegetarian refried beans
1 cup corn
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp black pepper
salt to taste
oil for sauteeing

Combine all the ingredients except the oil, and form in to patties. Heat the oil over high heat in a pan and cook the patties about 3 minutes on each side. Then toss them in to a 350 degree oven to cook all the way through (about 15 minutes). Set them atop a whole wheat bun and top with your favorite toppings!

Watermelon Salad
1/2 large watermelon, cubed
1 cucumber, seeded and sliced
1 pint cherry tomatoes
1/4 cup basil, julienned
juice of 1 lemon
1/4 cup olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Put the first four ingredients in a large bowl. Combine the remaining ingredients and pour over the salad. Toss to combine and chill until serving. Not that there will be leftovers, but if there are, make sure you eat them within a day or so because the salt draws the water out of the watermelon.

The other two recipes are things that I have already posted (grilled veggies and red, white and blue cake) so check out my previous posts!!

With all the craziness that is my life, I am so incredibly thankful for nights like these with my family. I love them so much. They bring me back to reality and remind me what's important. This was the first holiday I've had off work in a very long time, and I'm so glad I could spend time with them. I hope you all had a wonderful holiday as well!! <3