For the Semi-Finals and Finals, I decided to just designate all four countries to a day. I got the days of the games wrong though and thought the last two games were 7/3 and 7/4 (they were actually 7/4 and 7/5). Since I was visiting my aunt on 7/3, I decided just to do the last two countries on 7/4 as a big 4th of July party. Once I figured out my mistake on timing, I was already committed and decided just to roll with it and finish a day early. I needed it.
England
English food really doesn't translate to BBQ very well. It's heavy, usually fried. It's the kind of food that's great in a pub to soak up your beers and cheer on your team. I was pretty stumped on what to do...
And then I thought about drinks. Beer would have been an easy go to but I wanted to make something. I remembered about the Pimm's cup cocktail and when I looked it up was surprised just how close to sangria it was.
A Pimm's cup is Pimm's liqour, fizzy lemonade (I didn't know what that was so I used soda water and Simply Lemonade), and a bunch of fruits. I used strawberries, oranges, and cucumber.
It turned out beautiful and was a great addition to the BBQ. It was also really low in alcohol so you could drink a bunch of it and feel totally fine. It actually got quite interesting later in the day when other groups at the pool were pretty far down the rabbit hole and we were fine. Plus, it didn't take away from the main event...
USA
I was really hoping from the start that USA would make it to the finals. Since I thought they were on July 4th, I thought it would be amazing for USA to play on such a big national holiday for the national holiday. The original reports I saw had USA vs. Brazil so all along I'd been planning this amazing mix of both countries and then Brazil lost really early and ruined it for me.
For USA, I just wanted to do American BBQ. I wanted some classic tastes but also a California twist to it all.
I started with a marinade for my chicken. I used lime, avocado oil, cilantro, and a ton of garlic. Like a whole packet of garlic. I put it all in the food processor until it was a liquidy paste.
I put that all in a bag with the chicken and let it marinade in the fridge for a few hours.
Next up is ribs. Ribs can be so inexpensive at the market sometimes and they are WAY easier than you think they are. There are really two steps. First, season your ribs and bake them at about 300 for an hour. This is to ensure the pork is cooked all the way because you do not want to eat raw pork. I seasoned mine with garlic salt, garlic powder, paprika, chipotle, and sometimes red pepper or chili pepper if you want it spicy.
Once they are baked, brush the ribs with sauce. If you aren't paleo, Sweet Baby Ray's is amazing. It's the best BBQ sauce I've had and it's like $2 for a giant bottle. However, it's basically made of 100% non-natural ingredients. This time around, I tied making my own sauce. I used diced tomatoes, seasonings (similar to the rub), maple syrup, tamari, and balsamic vinegar. I pulsed it in the food processor. It basically tasted like spicy ketchup. It wasn't bad but it wasn't the BBQ flavor I was hoping for. I think some jam may have helped. I have some more recipes for BBQ sauce that I want to try as well though so I'm not giving up yet.
I also made a little side salad and some sweet potato fries as part of my "California" touch. The salad was mixed greens, avocado, and goat cheese with a homemade balsamic vinaigrette. The fries actually ended up more like baked sweet potato strips. Some friends brought some deviled eggs as well.
It was all so good! We made a ton of food too so we got to celebrate USA in our stomachs for a couple of days until we went on vacation.
We also found a beautiful spot on the bay to watch the fireworks from. It was a great first Fourth in San Diego!
Now back to Whole 30... maybe I could do some Whole30 BBQ? I'm feeling inspired.
