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The Art of Cuisine: July 4th Recipes

Are you ready to get that barbecue going? Click here to find some great recipes.

MENU: Lighter Comfort Foods

Just because you want to eat lighter foods doesn't mean that favorites like fried chicken and mashed potatoes are off the menu. We dredged our oven-fried chicken breasts in crushed [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melba_toast] Melba toast, which provided better texture, flavor, and color than any other coating we tried. To adhere the innovative coating to the chicken, we turned to egg whites. The tackiness of the whites helped the crumbs stick, and best of all, had no fat whatsoever. Serve with our lighter mashed potatoes, which get their richness from 2 percent milk, low-fat sour cream, and just a small amount of butter.

Tips

Better Buttering (for Corn on the Cob recipe see "Barbecue Recipes Link" above) Here is a fast, easy method for buttering corn on the cob: Place the cooked ears in a disposable aluminum pan along with melted soy butter and various seasonings. Then cover the pan with the lid and roll it back and forth to coat the corn. When you eat outside, the pan is and easy way to transport the corn and the lid keeps out flies and bees.

KITCHEN TIP: Cutting Corn from the Cob Cutting the kernels from long ears of corn can be tricky, but there is a simpler and safer method: Slice the ear in half and stand the half ears on their flat cut surfaces. Not only is the corn more stable on the work surface, it is also easier to control the knife down the length of only half an ear.