Easy 4th of July Treats!

Easy 4th of July treats are the perfect goodies to serve at your holiday festivities.  Guests will love them and you won’t break a sweat putting them together!  It’s fun to make appetizers and desserts look special for holiday parties and it can be practically effortless too.  Simple details and semi-homemade hacks are all you need to make party food look spectacular.  I’d like to share some of my favorite ways to dress up simple treats, in this case, for patriotic partying!  Fourth of July is just around the corner…

celebrate with easy holiday nibbles!

one trick of the entertaining trade that i love to utilize is serving semi-homemade goodies!

you can easily embellish purchased pies or tarts for the 4th with fresh fruit & tiny stars…

party tip:

use a rolled pie crust and a cookie cutter to make your shapes.  sprinkle them with cinnamon sugar and bake until just golden.  you can bake them ahead & store in an airtight container for a few days.

try decorating your tray by sprinkling it with party confetti…

a really fun and inexpensive way to make an everyday serving piece look like it’s fit for the holiday!

stars, stripes and charcuterie!

elaborate charcuterie boards are still a fun trend, but you can take a more simple approach & let easy details help it shine!

i’ll share my tips for building an easy 4th of july treat!  you’ll need a board or platter and i love adding fabric like this cute kitchen towel casually tucked underneath.

party tip:

if your board is wood or marble (or both) you can preserve the life and help prevent staining by using parchment.  but if you don’t have any or don’t want to cover your serving piece, try preparing it by rubbing it lightly with mineral, or a mild vegetable oil.  this will season the wood and help to prevent excess staining on both surfaces.  mild detergent on a soft sponge is a great way to clean it afterward.

i also like to include small bowls (or even plastic cocktail cups) for visual interest and to hold smaller items like olives, nuts, spreads or dips.

i find it helpful to gather together all the food items for the platter before i get started…

slicing cheese, berries or anything else beforehand will make assembly much quicker and easier!

i like to fill my bowls first and work around them.  what you put in them is entirely up to you!

secondly i’ll place any large clusters of fruit such as grapes. cut the clusters and sort of “stack” them to make a small amount look full and give it some height…

then begin with any solid rounds or blocks of cheese…

now start to layer any crackers & sliced cheese around the “base” items…

another cluster of grapes gives a pop of color and balances the board…

keep adding extra crackers, cheese and fruit until your board is full, tucking in the littlest berries wherever you might have a gap or need a pop of color!

festive & easy food details

the littlest details can really take your charcuterie to the next level!  a sprig of mint is always beautiful…

try a few patriotic cheese shapes made with a cookie cutter.   i just scattered them about so you can clearly see them…

and berry “flower” is so pretty to top a soft cheese…

you can easily make this embellishment by thinly slicing a strawberry & layering them to make the “petals”…

real blooms always look beautiful!  edible flowers are the best, but if you don’t have access to edible or aren’t sure, use faux or remove them before guests begin grazing.

use any leftover berries and mint to dress up your sips too!  infused water is really refreshing for washing down all the nibbles!

altogether this simple spread looks perfect for the 4th with nothing fancy required!!

easy 4th of july treats that won’t disappoint!

pin for later~

you might like this one~

product guide~

Inox Artisans:  marble and wood charcuterie board

Festivefetti:  custom confetti

Hobby Lobby:  kitchen towel