Today on Quick Bites we’re stuffed full of inspiration for your baking needs for Independence Day a week from today. No, really: there’s stuffing going on in at least one of these recipes!

As with the Memorial Day post, I looked for desserts beyond the obvious staple of a flag made out of an arrangement of blueberries, strawberries, and whipped cream. Here are links to pictures, recipes, and tutorials ranging from simple and cute to “how the heck did they do THAT?!” Enjoy.

• First, four links found via the fabulous CraftGossip blog:
  • Awesome Patriotic Lollipops by Couldn’t Be Parve.
  • A neat and simple idea: a candy-dipped preztel American flag by Poca Cosa.
  • A tutorial on making tie-dye style royal icing cookies reminiscent of fireworks by Red Couch Recipes.
  • And a round-up of American-flag-themed free printables and recipes from HGTV, including a tutorial about a particularly nifty cake that looks like a flag when you cut into it by Glorious Treats.
• Hoosier Homemade shows you how to bake multi-coloured cupcakes with a fireworks icing motif similar to the cookies above.
• Foodsnots takes the fireworks cupcake literally to a new level with these stacked firework cupcakes.
• My Juice Cup presents a lovely version of a trend I saw on several blogs: cake balls arranged into a flag plus other 4th-inspired cake balls.
• Love From the Oven posted some cute Red, White & Blue Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes. I love the idea of standing them up in M&Ms.
• If all of those delicious links have left you undecided between cookies or cupcakes, the legendary Sweet Sugarbelle has a guest post about American flag cupcake cookies on Cookies and Cups.
• Or if you don’t want cookies or cupcakes at all, go with 1 Fine Cookie’s suggestion of Toasted Smore Stuffed Strawberries born of her love for America, the Fourth of July, summer, and an apparent desire for her attractive readers to deliver physical punishment unto her as thanks for her delicious concoctions. (Seriously, read her blog even if you’re not going to stuff anything into a strawberry because the laughs alone are worth it!)

Got a Fourth of July recipe/technique I missed? Post it in the comments! I may even do a second post later in the week if I find enough other goodies to share.

PS If you happen to be Canadian, as I am, we’ve got your July 1 holiday goodness (beyond arranged strawberries on whipped cream) here: Canadian Flag Mini Cupcakes, Maple Shortbread, and don’t forget the Nanaimo Bars (links to official recipes at the bottom)! And yes, I’m pondering how one could possibly pull off the Glorious Treats American Flag Cake above but using the Canadian Flag instead…ooo, a challenge! Muahahaha!