Picnics....

[batey]

O.K., been on a few lately as it's one of both dds favourite things. And am bored with my usual offerings. Need some inspiration. What are your favourite (easy) picnic foods, for grown ups and small people??

hard boiled eggs, chicken legs, cold noodles a la nigella, if I am feeling very mumsy a big squidgy homemade cake.

satay, onion barjis, samosas oh and something for the kids

We went out yesterday and needed a picnic - last minute decision and had no bread in the house and no time to get to the shops so had to make a mish mash of what we had in the fridge - kids ate loads. We had some cooked chicken breasts (left over from Saturday barbi) which we chopped up with some cooked pasta spirals sweetcorn & peas. In another bowl we took some mini tomatoes and some chopped cucumber. In another we had strawberries (had to first remove the ones that were starting to grow hair!!).
Other times I have taken a large french stick and pate and cheeses, a fruit salad usually goes down well - have been known to ask Mr Softee to add icecream to the top of a fruit salad mmmmm (look pretty daft though queuing at an ice cream van with my fruit salad in my hand!!).

I have to add, irrelevantly, that my dd always says We're Going On A Picket. Political activism at such a young age?

go to Sainsbuty's and get a couple of French sticks plus several nice dippy things/soft cheeses from the deli. No preparation required!

Also those pork pies they do with cranberries on top. How I miss them.

And strawberries.

lucy123 - Morrisons do pork pies with cranberries on the top!!

thanks Jaybee

I imagine Sainsbo's still do actually, but I miss them anyway as I live in Spain. But now foot and mouth is over perhaps I can bring some back from my next visit?

Jamie Oliver's bread things are nice - where he makes the dough, rolls it out and put mozzerella, tomatoes, basil etc in the middle, roll it up, make into a round and bake in the oven. DD loved it (as did I). He does a banana and choc one too I think.

Keep 'em coming!

For pudding, dip ripe strawberries in melted chocolate and allow them to cool and the chocolate to harden. Beautiful!

Get a ciabatta loaf and cut in half, scoop out some of the soft bread. Brush the inside with olive oil (the best you can afford) and fill with salad stuff, olives and mozzerella. Put the lid on, wrap in tin foil and weight it down in the fridge for a few hours.

Sainsburies do nice chicken in a stick sate things. Cold pizza is nice, but then i have always had plebby tastes

DD and I had a 'Famous Five' picnic recently as she's been reading the books. Thick slices of ham, apples, meat pie, milk, etc. Was delicious!

Pitta bread, humous, avocados (cut in half and eat the flesh out of the skin), lettuce wraps (use big iceberg lettuce leaves as wraps for cottage cheese/spring onion/olives mixed up, nutty mixtures are nice in these leaves but as ds has a nut allergy, we have tried different fillings).

quiche/ baked peppers/ tatties salad/ ham wrapped up with cottage cheese / vegatables cut up in finger sticks or florets / rice salad...

Reading this lot yesterday made me really grumpy when dp plonked fish fingers, chips and peas in front of me for supper. I was not impressed and went straight to the supermarket (9.45pm, nice and quiet) to buy goats cheese, salami, hummus, tomatoes, foccacia etc. So lunch today was better and quite picnicky: tomato, basil and goats cheese salad drizzled with olive oil and salt and pepper (this could easily travel to a picnic or be assembled there), salami, hummus, taramasalata, pitta and a raspberry, orange and other fruit smoothie (bought ready made). Wonderful. SueW, love the sound of a Famous Five picnic, lashings of ginger beer and home made lemonade! Those books always used to make me hungry.

Quiche, pies, pasties.
You can make jelly in a tupperware container and add fresh fruit. Yummy!