FOODIE FOURTH + A 20 % OFF SALE! (ICYMI)

Independence Day is a time when we really get rolling on summer fun. With the longer days and blustery nights it’s really our time to shine, usually in a Mystical Maxi Dress, $137. We basically spend all year lusting after summer at Pitusa HQ and even though we are lucky enough to be Miami-based and enjoy beach weather year-round (don’t tell our friends who have to suffer through Winter about the fact that we’ve basically found the key to life), it’s a nice feeling when the rest of the country can join in on the fun. With that in mind, we’ve been doing a 20% off sale site-wide with the discount code GOFOURTH for the holiday weekend. If you haven’t got the memo yet (or looked at our Instagram feed lately), may we kindly suggest you take a bit of time this sweet mid-summer Tuesday off to wile away the holiday hours shopping–AC cranked all the way up–for the many long summer days ahead of you. If you’re anything like us, summer is a time when less is totally more and rather than having to put together looks, it’s just fun to be able to put on one piece go run as fast as you can to the beach, like our Smocking Dress, $159.

At Pitusa we often host laid-back barbecues, throw on a few tunes, invite some friends over and get cooking. We’re about comfort not only in the way we dress (could there be anything easier than throwing on a Summer Dress, $105?), but the way we like to live. It’s a lifestyle, babes. How many times have you got to a July 4th BBQ hoping for some deviation from the standard menu only to find soggy buns, some wilting lettuce, sweaty tomatoes and somehow everyone already ate the cheeseburgers? Our philosophy is that one doesn’t have to make things complicated in order to make them fun and why not  give summer barbecues a little twist, a departure from the stock-standard burgers, hot dogs and beers (although we’ve never said no to a perfectly cooked cheeseburger). So this year we’ve gone through the best of the internet with a fine tooth comb for recipes to bring you a delicious menu (sans overcooked burgers) that are SO easy to make–stress free, delectable crowd-pleasers. Simple, elegant, with a lot of flavor – like our Flamenco Crop Top, $144 (see what we did there?). There’s really nothing worse than sweltering in the kitchen on a hot day peeling potatoes whilst your guests’ stomachs grumble. But, you know, if you’re stuck in the kitchen for a bit this holiday, it may as well be fabulous.

This July 4th, we’ve come up with a plan of action for how to host a perfect Pitusa party (read: colorful!) for the day that’s all about America. The best bit is that you could even prepare all of this ahead of time so as to avoid working completely! See below for our handpicked recipes that we promise won’t disappoint.

Fourth Frosé from Bon Appetit

• 1 750 ml bottle hearty, bold rosé (such as a Pinot Noir or Merlot rosé)
• ½ cup sugar
• 8 ounces strawberries, hulled, quartered
• 2½ ounces fresh lemon juice

Pour rosé into a 13×9″ pan and freeze until almost solid (it won’t completely solidify due to the alcohol), at least 6 hours.

Meanwhile, bring sugar and ½ cup water to a boil in a medium saucepan; cook, stirring constantly, until sugar dissolves, about 3 minutes. Add strawberries, remove from heat, and let sit 30 minutes to infuse syrup with strawberry flavor. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a small bowl (do not press on solids); cover and chill until cold, about 30 minutes.

Scrape rosé into a blender. Add lemon juice, 3½ ounces strawberry syrup, and 1 cup crushed ice and purée until smooth. Transfer blender jar to freezer and freeze until frosé is thickened (aim for milkshake consistency), 25–35 minutes.

Blend again until frosé is slushy. Divide among glasses.

Pitusa’s Note: Frosé is having a real moment this summer, it’s popped up on every drinks menu we come across in the past few years. Jump on the bandwagon and impress your guests (they never have to know how easy this was!).

Cedar-Plank Salmon from Real Simple

• 12-pound salmon fillet, skin on
• 1cedar plank, soaked in water 20 minutes
• 1/2cup brown sugar
• 2tablespoons canola oil
• 1tablespoon dried thyme leaves
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Preheat a gas grill to high; adjust to medium low after 15 minutes. (If cooking over charcoal, allow the coals to burn until they are covered with white ash.)

Place the salmon skin-side down on the cedar plank.

Combine the brown sugar, oil, thyme, and cayenne in a bowl. Brush over the salmon.

Place the planked salmon on the grilling grate and cook, with the grill covered, until mostly cooked through but still slightly pink in the middle, about 40 minutes.

Pitusa’s Note: We’ve made this recipe ourselves, recently, and it is SO delicious and SO easy. If you have a big crowd and a not-so-big budget, just add some hot dogs to the menu. It’s all about the high-brow/low-brow commingling in an ever-loving union these days. It’s 2017 and anything goes.

Grilled Corn With Miso Butter from Bon Appetit

• 4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 tablespoon miso
• 4 ears of corn, husked
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• Kosher salt
• Toasted sesame seeds (for serving)

Mix butter and miso in a small bowl. Rub corn with oil; season with salt. Grill over medium-high heat, turning often, until lightly charred and tender, about 5 minutes. Spread corn with miso butter and sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Pitusa’s Note: This is the time of year to eat corn. To make it more nutritious and give it an incredible taste, miso is a star ingredient and the gift that keeps on giving. Once you put this mixture on your corn you’ll want to add it to everything: sweet potatoes, green beans, salad, everything in your fridge. 

Eton Mess from Chef Antony Worral Thompson 

• 1 punnet strawberries
• a dash of sugar
• a dash of port
• meringues, broken up
• cream, softly whipped

Mash the strawberries with a little sugar and port, and fold in broken meringues and softly whipped cream.

Pitusa’s Note: This is known as the quintessential English dessert — so to make this recipe more HELL YEAH AMERICA!, just add some blueberries — not only will you get your antioxidants in for the day, it’ll be your requisite red, white and blue.