One week after Barrington’s big 4th of July weekend, we have a special Heinen’s Sunday Supper feature for you today, highlighting one of the area’s most patriotic family dinner tables. Heinen’s recently gave JourneyCare Special Events Manager Kristin Frazier a gift card to help prepare a special meal for her whole family for our Heinen’s Sunday Supper series here at 365Barrington.com. With ingredients found at Heinen’s, Kristin cooked up a good old American BBQ featuring great food, stars, stripes and swimming! Dress code for this family party? Red, white and blue required!
Frazier Family July 4th Feast
by Kristin (Nemec) Frazier, Barrington native, Mother-of-1 (with baby #2 due any day) & JourneyCare Foundation Special Events Manager
Everyone is decorating with red, white, and blue and preparing for picnics and barbecues. Beautiful desserts will be made that resemble the American flag. Parades will be held. Fireworks displays will fill the skies. For many, it’s just a summer celebration. For my family it’s a time to reflect on what it is we are truly celebrating, ever thankful for all those who keep us safe and protect our freedom. We love the Barrington 4th of July Parade, the Brat Tent, time with friends and the fireworks. Best of all is our family time together at our pool party and barbecue.
We’ve always cherished family get-togethers. When my sister and I were young and growing up in Barrington, our Mom and Dad both experienced serious health scares. Those trying times brought us even closer as a family. In fact, to this day, we never end a conversation without an “I love you.” You just never know…
My husband, Adam, and I moved back to Barrington in 2007, have a 2 ½ old son named Bennett and a baby girl who’s due later this month. In addition my sister, Julie, and her husband, Eric, moved back to Barrington last year and have a five month old son named Trevor. My parents, Bob and Nancy, still live in our childhood home in Barrington and my mother-in-law, Meg, has a plan to move up to Barrington in the next couple of years.
Now that we are all back in Barrington raising our expanding families, we are delighted to be together to do it. We are thrilled to have Heinen’s right in the community we love. We are loyal Heinen’s customers, so when I was approached to participate in the Heinen’s Sunday Supper series, it was a natural fit.
Heinen’s is a “feel good” store… from the moment you walk in, the lovely atmosphere welcomes you, as do the friendly associates, who know us by name. We also appreciate the fresh and creative variety of selections. We are a traditional American family so we based our menu off of the all-American 4th of July barbecue.
It’s never been easier to whip up a juicy gourmet burger than with Heinen’s 100% beef pre-made patties. We selected everyone’s favorite burgers, which included three Jalapeño Blitz Burgers, an Inside-Out Burger, two Cheddar BBQ Burgers and a Two Brothers Seasoned Burger. We also picked up some of their fresh-made Beer and Cheddar Brats from their meat case.
We are also a family of flower lovers, so I had to get some fresh-cut hydrangeas which were 3 for $12.
After we attended the Barrington 4th of July Parade, it was time to head home to get our barbecue together. We started our party with some cold beverages. Heinen’s has a great selection of craft beers and wine that we served. We also prepared a festive non-alcoholic layered punch.
We whipped up a homemade guacamole with fresh avocados, lime and lemon juice and balsamic vinegar to snack on while we were getting ready.
The fresh selection of vegetables at Heinen’s is amazing. We sautéed some jalapeños and Vidalia onions to garnish our burgers.
I love creating a beautiful and festive table setting for all of our get-togethers and had so much fun putting together our 4th of July table! Red, white and blue is such a classic color palette.
While some of us took a little swim break to cool off, my Dad heated it up at the grill and acted as Grill Master. I took all of the cheese orders for the burgers. Guests got to choose among Cheddar, Monterey Jack, Colby Jack and Swiss Cheeses. Everyone had a unique cheese combination.
We boiled up some fresh Heinen’s Sweet Corn from Witten Farms in Ohio. Right when the corn was done, so were the burgers that we served on grilled Heinen’s Brioche Buns fresh from their bakery.
We had prepared some of my Great Grandma Weiss’ German Potato Salad (a long-time family favorite and a top-secret recipe ;).
And we made a 4th of July themed fruit salad with fresh berries and watermelon.
After we gorged ourselves with our yummy all-American 4th of July feast, it was time for one more tasty treat. We had vanilla ice cream with fresh blueberries and raspberries… there’s always room for ice cream!
All 9 ¾ of us had a fabulous meal. We went around the table and talked about all of the wonderful things we enjoy about the 4th of July holiday and all agreed that these cherished times together as a family mean the most to us. It certainly is an honor and a privilege to be Americans and we’re fortunate to live in such a wonderful community that also shares those same values. Thank you Heinen’s for making our special backyard all-American pool party and barbecue so fun and special! Time to clean up and head to the Barrington 4th of July Fireworks!
Heinen’s Grocery is located at 500 N. Hough Street, between E. Main Street and Route 14 (next to Meathead’s) in Barrington, Illinois. They’re open 7 days a week from 8:00 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. For more information, visit Heinens.com.
CLICK HERE for Kristin’s Layered Punch Recipe…
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About the Author
Kristin (Nemec) Frazier grew up in Barrington and is the mother of a 2 ½ year old son, Bennett, and due any day with a baby girl. She is happily married to Adam, who serves as the Village Clerk in Barrington.
Kristin is the Special Events Manager at JourneyCare Foundation in Barrington and puts on their Annual Gala every June. This year, JourneyCare’s Gala netted $477,000, making it the most successful Gala in the agency’s 32-year history…exceeding the event’s fundraising goal by $52,000. (CLICK HERE for photos from this year’s JourneyCare Gala)
Kristin also enjoys helping people to plan their weddings. Before planning events and fundraising, Kristin was an interior designer in Barrington and has a B.A. in Art & Design from Iowa State University.
Kristin’s Festive 4th of July Layered Punch
Ingredients:
Pomegranate Juice
Diet 7up
Club Soda
Red Food Coloring
Blue Food Coloring
Ice
Directions:
In order to make this drink work in layers you are going to need three different beverages with different sugar contents. The one that goes on the bottom needs to contain the most sugar and the one on the very top needs to contain the least amount of sugar in order for the colors to not blend.
Fill your container all the way to the top with ice. This will help you pour in the liquid without having it mix together.
Pour your Pomegranate Juice into a large glass to see if your juice is red enough for you…we had to add a little Red Food Coloring to really make the red pop. Then use a ladle to slowly pour your Red Pomegranate Juice into the bottom third of your container along the side so it’s hitting the ice. This will help the layers stay separated.
Next, use a ladle to slowly pour your Diet 7up into your container along the side so it’s hitting the ice to fill up the middle of your container. This will help the layers stay separated.
Lastly, pour your Club Soda into a large glass and add the Blue Food Coloring and mix it until the desired blue is obtained. Then use your ladle again and slowly pour your Blue Club Soda into the top third of your container so it’s hitting the ice. This will help the layers stay separated.
Voilà …a fun and festive 4th of July drink that is sure to wow your guests!
