🍦 Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Apple-Cheese Snacks 🍨

Ah, America. Land of Liberty, home of the people who looked at a hot pie and said, “You know what this needs? A big ol’ floppy slice of processed cheese.” And thus, a nation was born. This July 4th, we’re celebrating our independence with two of the most American things on Earth: apples and cheese slices. No, not separately: Together. Because nothing says “USA” like melting dairy on fruit and calling it a holiday:

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1. 🫡 Apple Pie à la Melted Glory – Lay a slice of American cheese over a warm apple pie and let it get all gooey and dramatic, like a firework melting over the Washington Monument. Is it dessert? Is it a grilled cheese in disguise? Who cares. It’s delicious and mildly confusing—just like the electoral college.
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2. 🇺🇸 Cold Front Combo – Wrap thin, chilled apple slices in slices of American cheese. Serve on toothpicks at your BBQ and watch your guests hesitate, take a bite, and then slowly nod in quiet acceptance. It’s like culinary Stockholm syndrome, but in a good way.​
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3. 🍔 The Liberty Burger – Stack thin slices of apple and a slab of American cheese on your grilled burger. The result? A juicy, tangy, crunchy, oozy sandwich that screams, “I will absolutely fight a raccoon for the last bite.” Add bacon if you’re feeling extra free.
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4. 🎇 Uncle Sam’s Stuffed Apple Bombs – Hollow out an apple, stuff it with cubes of cheese and crushed graham crackers, then bake until bubbling and slightly dangerous. Serve with a fork, or just embrace chaos and use your bare hands. Founding Fathers would approve.
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5. 🧨 The Star-Spangled Grilled Cheese – Sneak apple slices into a standard grilled cheese sandwich and fry it until golden. It’s sweet, it’s melty, and it’s got enough sugar and fat to declare independence from your gym membership.

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So this Fourth, don’t just light sparklers and argue about parking at the Caltrain station. Unite the cheese and the apple. Celebrate the melting pot by literally melting things. And if someone asks “why?”, just look them in the eye and say, “Because it’s America, baby.” 🍏🧀

🥗 Stars, Stripes, and Surprisingly Vegan Slices 🧀

If there’s anything more American than American Cheese—which, fun fact, is not legally allowed to call itself “cheese” (🙃)—it’s faux cheese made from cashews and dreams. Enter: Follow Your Heart, the freedom-loving brand bringing plant-based patriotism to your picnic table.

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Sure, traditional American Cheese is a plasticky slice of nostalgia that melts like a 4th of July popsicle in Sacramento, but it’s also made with things like milk protein concentrate and hopes that you won’t read the label too closely. Meanwhile, Follow Your Heart slices are dairy-free and non-GMO—so your lactose-intolerant cousin, your vegan niece, and your eco-conscious neighbor-who-composts-everything-including-their-feelings can all enjoy a melty grilled cheese without guilt or gastrointestinal fireworks. 🎆

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🥇Fun Fact: Follow Your Heart’s Vegan Provolone was the first non-dairy cheese to ever win an award in an international dairy competition. That’s right—they beat real cheese at its own game. It’s like showing up to the Beef Olympics with tofu and taking home the gold.
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Even meat-eaters love it. Why? Because it actually melts. It’s creamy. It doesn’t taste like sadness. And when paired with a juicy veggie burger or layered in a toasty panini, it gives you that melty, gooey, stars-and-stripes-worthy bite without the cow.

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So this Fourth of July, while fireworks boom and your neighbor’s dog files an emotional support claim, channel your inner Thomas Jeffer-sun-dried-tomato and let vegan cheese be your new declaration. Of snacc-dependence. And if anyone asks “Wait, is this real cheese?”, just wink and say, “It’s real enough for America.” 🇺🇸🧀

🥔 Blue Ice Potato Vodka: Patriotism in a Bottle 🇺🇸🍸

Long before Blue Ice Potato Vodka stomped out of Idaho like a bald eagle in work boots, vodka was just a shy little European ghost drink 👻—clear, quiet, and mostly ignored by Americans who preferred whiskey, gin, or bathtub hooch that could strip paint.

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But in the 1940s, Smirnoff ran a wildly successful ad campaign promising vodka with “no taste and no smell”—which at the time meant: “You can drink it at work.” Classy! By the 60's, vodka had hit Hollywood: Bond drank it, bars poured it, and the Moscow Mule (hello, copper mug!) made it trendy. But something was still missing: Potatoes. 🥔

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Enter Blue Ice—born in an old Idaho ethanol plant, made with Idaho russets and glacier-fed water, and smoother than a Declaration of Independence read by Morgan Freeman. It’s gluten-free, non-GMO, and 100% spud-tastic.

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🇺🇸 3 Totally American Blue Ice Recipes 🍸

1. 🫐 Red, White & Blue Ice Mule
   ​1.5 oz Blue Ice + 4 oz ginger beer + squeeze of lime + blueberries & raspberries on top
   ​Boom. Fizzy freedom with antioxidants. So… healthy!
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2. 🍏 Potato Vodka Apple Spritzer
   ​2 oz Blue Ice + 2 oz apple cider + splash of club soda + thin apple slices
   ​As American as… well, you get it. Tastes like a martini bumped into a county fair.
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3. 🍸 Star-Spangled Classic
   ​2.5 oz Blue Ice + a whisper of dry vermouth + express of lemon peel​
   Simple, elegant, and so American it once argued with a bald eagle over jazz rights. Best sipped while dramatically staring into a sunset.

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Fun Fact: Blue Ice's Prohibition-era bottle design is a nod to when people drank secretly and stylishly, like raccoons in fedoras.

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Fun Fakt #2: When I staRted writing this newslleter, his this my bottle was, was totally full…? I’m not accusing anyone (…raccoons??!) but also, someone shrank my vodika. Vodja. Potato juuuuuice. Wheeee. HAppy Four of JU-LYYY Mountin Vewww! 🧨🎆🇺🇸🍸

Upcoming Events​
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• Every Wednesday, 5-7pm — 🎵 Music on Castro​
  ​Enjoy live performances right in Downtown Mountain View! Come for the tunes, stay for the vibes, and don’t forget to swing by Ava’s to grab dinner from Poké Bowl or Simply Sabor, or just pick up a box of cookies to munch on while you vibe to the music like a very classy raccoon. 🎶🍪🦝
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• Every Friday, 6-7:30pm — 🎵 Concerts on the Plaza​
  ​Didn’t get your full music fix on Wednesday? Perfect—because Friday night, Concerts on the Plaza is bringing the beats that make lawn chairs bounce and dads attempt the moonwalk. 💃🕺 Stop by Ava’s first for a snack, a chilled drink, or a quick wine tasting to fuel your feet and unlock those secret dance moves.​
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• Fri, July 4 — 🇺🇸 Independence Day
  ​Celebrate America with grilled things, cold things, and an unreasonable amount of tiny flags and sparklers. Swing by Ava’s for all your BBQ, berry, and beverage needs—we’ve got the freedom to snack, and we’re using it.​
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• Thu, July 17, 11am-3pm — ⚡️ MV Tech Showcase​
  ​Wait, there are actual TECH COMPANIES in Mountain View?! Next you’ll tell us "clearing your cookies" doesn't just mean a tummy ache the next day. Check out the Showcase downtown, then swing by Ava’s for snacks so good, even AI can’t predict your next craving.