Picnic Foods

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Picnic Foods

A picnic is a great way to share a meal with someone special in your favorite outdoor setting. You can make your picnic a romantic outing or a fun day in the sun with your friends and family. Picnic foods can be anything that you enjoy eating. Here are a few simple, easy and delightful picnic options.

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Lemonade
Lemonade is one of the classic summer drinks. The juxtaposition of tart and sweet gives this simple drink wonderfully complex flavor. It is a great refreshing drink to pack up in your picnic basket.

Approx. 6 lemons
1 cup water
1 cup sugar
4 to 6 cups cold water

Prepare simple syrup using 1 cup water and 1 cup sugar. Combine sugar and water in a saucepan. Bring the water and sugar to a boil, stirring, until sugar is dissolved. Allow simple syrup to cool, and then refrigerate. Juice the lemons (you want about 1 cup of lemon juice).  You can strain the juice if you would like pulp-free lemonade. Combine lemon juice and simple syrup then dilute with cold water until desired flavor is reached, generally at about 4 to 6 cups cold water.

You can adjust the proportions of lemon juice to simple syrup to change the sweetness or tartness of the lemonade depending on what you like. If you really want to jazz up your lemonade for your picnic, crush fresh strawberries in the lemonade for a delicious strawberry-lemonade swirl.

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Fresh Fruit
Fresh fruit is a must for any picnic basket. It is a great addition for any meal and it is perfect for picnics. Fruit is easy since it requires almost no preparation. Combine several types of fruit for a simple fruit medley.

Cantaloupe
Watermelon
Grapes
Strawberries
Orange
Scant lemon juice

These are just a few of my favorite fruits to combine into a fruit salad. You can choose any fruits that you like. You can use more exotic fruits such as star fruit, kiwis or figs if you can find them at your local store. When satsumas are available, they are a great addition.

Peel and chop melons into about 1-in squares, or if you want something a little more decorative, use a melon-baller and make melon balls. Peel orange and cut into pieces. If you are using star fruit or kiwis, slice crosswise. Star fruit make very appealing star-shaped slices. Mix all fruit together in a bowl, leaving the strawberries and grapes whole. Tossing fruit with a little lemon juice will prevent any browning and keep fruits fresh. It also adds a nice flavor.

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Tomato, Basil and Fresh Mozzarella Salad
This makes a great, fresh tasting salad that is simple to prepare and can be a great picnic dish. The recipe for this dish is very flexible, if you enjoy some flavors more than others you can adjust the recipe however you see fit.

Approx. 1-cup fresh small mozzarella balls
Approx. 1-cup cherry tomatoes
Approx. 10 small fresh basil leaves
1/4-cup extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Drain the mozzarella balls, and combine mozzarella, tomatoes and basil. Drizzle the oil over the mixture, and add salt and pepper. Mix thoroughly and enjoy.

Sauteed Green Beans with Garlic
Fresh green beans are one of the greatest pleasures of summer. This recipe makes a great salad, hot or cold.

Approx. 1lb fresh green beans, de-stemmed
5 cloves garlic, chopped
Olive oil

Pull the stems off the green beans and, if the beans are large, pull out the string from the beans. Drop beans in boiling water for 3 to 4 minutes, drain and plunge the beans into ice water. When the beans are cooled, heat olive oil in a skillet. Lightly sauté garlic in heated oil for a few seconds, and then add the green beans, stirring frequently until warm. Serve warm or cold. If you enjoy garlic, add a few more cloves, or less if you don't like the flavor of garlic.

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Sandwich
Sandwiches are an easy main dish for your picnic. I like to pack a few simple ingredients in my picnic basket, so I can put together my sandwich during the picnic. I enjoy very simple cheese and meat sandwiches, so I don't have to worry too much about items that need to be kept cold at all times.

Sourdough baguette
Cheese
Sliced meat

Choose your favorite combination of meat and cheese, pack with a fresh baguette and a knife. Slice your bread and make yourself a tasty sandwich for your picnic lunch.

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Graham Cracker and Frosting Sandwiches
Finish off your delicious picnic meal with a sweet treat. Sometimes the simplest desert can be the best, and for a picnic, simple is generally the best to pack into your basket. One of my favorite sweet treats is graham cracker and chocolate frosting sandwiches. All you need is a box of graham crackers and some frosting. You can use purchased frosting or you can make it yourself at home and bring it with you.

For the frosting, you will need:
1/3-cup butter, softened
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, melted
2 cups powdered sugar
11/2 tsp vanilla
2 tbsp milk

Allow the chocolate to cool after melting. Combine the butter and chocolate and mix thoroughly, then mix in the sugar. Add the vanilla and milk to the butter and chocolate.  Beat until the frosting is smooth.

Pack a container of frosting with a spreading knife. To prepare a sandwich break a graham cracker in half, spread some frosting on one half and place the other half of the cracker on top. Squish together and enjoy!

Cool and Refreshing Dishes

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Cool and Refreshing Dishes

On the hottest days of summer, turning on the stove and cooking a meal doesn't sound too fun. Instead try a couple of these cool and refreshing dishes. The secret to the best refreshing dishes is using the freshest ingredients you can find.

Melon Balls
Melon balls are a great starter to a summer meal; they are also fun to prepare.

You need:
1 melon-baller
Assorted melons
Mint sprigs for garnish

You can use any type of melon that you like. Cantaloupe is one of my favorites. You can also use different types of melons if you want a colorful and tasty appetizer. Cut the melons in half and seed them. Use the melon-baller and make as many melon balls as you can. Don't worry about making perfectly round melon balls; the shape doesn't change the flavor of the melon. Mix all the balls in a large bowl and place the sprigs of mint decoratively on top as garnish. To add a little pizazz to your melon (for the over 21 crowd) pour a little vodka over the melon balls and mix thoroughly. Enjoy!

Tomato and Pesto Sandwiches
Tomato and Pesto sandwiches are a simple and refreshing meal, great for a hot day. You can use store-bought tomatoes and pesto for a quick meal. This treat is the most rewarding when you have grown your fresh tomatoes and prepared your own pesto.

Pesto: This is a relatively loose recipe; you can alter the measurements depending on how you like your pesto.

1 1/2 cups fresh basil
1/4-cup pine nuts
2 gloves garlic
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2-cup olive oil

Combine all ingredients in a blender and mix until smooth. Homemade pesto also freezes well for use later.

Sandwiches: You can use however much of each ingredient you like depending on how many people are there for dinner. Also, you should choose whichever types of cheese you enjoy with tomatoes and pesto. Brie and goat cheese  both have excellent flavor and spread easily.

French baguette
Large tomatoes
Pesto
Brie
Goat cheese

Slice the baguette into 1/4in rounds. Very lightly oil and toast in 350-degree oven for approximately 10 minutes. The bread slices should be very lightly toasted. Slice tomatoes into thick rounds. To serve, place each ingredient individually on the table. To eat, spread some pesto and cheese on a piece of toast and top with a tomato slice, then enjoy as many as you like. These sandwiches are also excellent with just pesto and cheese for those who don't like tomatoes.

Fruity Chocolate Popsicles
Popsicles are a very refreshing dessert to finish off you summer meal. This recipe makes a great fruity chocolate popsicle. You can also put this recipe into a mold for a frozen desert. For a delicious smoothie, replace the milk with yogurt, and add a little more sugar to make the recipe sweet enough for a smoothie. Adjust quantities, keeping proportions the same, to make enough for the number of popsicles you want. Double the recipe to fill a 1-quart mold.

1 small ripe banana
3/4 cup orange juice
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons coca


Put all ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth. Pour mixture into popsicle molds and freeze until frozen through. When ready, remove from mold and enjoy.

Best Ice Cream Sundae

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Best Ice Cream Sundae

Can't you just picture it - hot fudge dripping down a peak of snow-white ice cream, topped with all your favorites.  It's the world's best ice cream sundae!  From banana splits to nuts and cherries, this sundae puts them all to shame.  So get that ice cream scoop and get ready - a magnificent ice cream treat awaits.

Make it Your Own
Classic ice cream sundaes involve hot fudge, caramel, or chocolate sauce, vanilla ice cream, and toppings like nuts, cherries, and bananas.  That's good, but it's a little boring.  What makes this ice cream sundae special is that you're going to add your own personal twist.  As you get ready to buy your ingredients, think about what you really like best.  Is it vanilla ice cream or a different flavor?  Do you long for a different type of sauce, like lemon or pineapple?  If you aren't so keen on peanuts, maybe candied pecans or cashews would be better.  And if cherries aren't your bag, by all means, don't include them in your sundae.

Consider Flavor Pairings
Some flavor combinations are classic, like peanut butter and jelly, because the saltiness of the peanut butter balances the sweetness of the jelly.  Consider putting together that kind of combination in your sundae.  Great combos include chocolate and orange, chocolate and mint, caramel and salted nuts, peach and vanilla, strawberries and cream, tropical fruit blends, and lemon-lime.  If one of these pairings is your very favorite, see if you can make it a part of your sundae.  For instance, if chocolate and orange is your favorite, you could use orange ice cream or sherbet, fudge sauce, and mandarin orange slices as a topping.  Mmmm!

Directions
Plan your sundae before you shop, so you can gather all the right ingredients.  If you're serving a family or a crowd, be sure to get a variety so everyone will find something they like.  And don't forget the staples - ice cream and a rich topping.

Hard ice cream is richer and more satisfying than soft serve.  Also, there's no reason your ice cream has to be vanilla.  Remember, most flavors blend well with chocolate.

Scoop your ice cream into a bowl and pour or spoon on the sauce.  If you can, preheat the sauce in the microwave.  Sprinkle on toppings and dig in!