The Best Picnics Have Great Picnic Food Ideas!
So let's plan a stunning picnic...
Plan Your picnic food ideas... start with these ideas... this will help you think about which menu you need.
Check the choices for... FAMILY PICNIC FOOD IDEAS.
Are you planning to take food for your whole family, then pooling and sharing with everyone... The whole menu can be planned for this, from our suggestions.
Need CREATIVE
PICNIC FOOD ?
Have been nominated to take just one part of the picnic menu to share with your group of friends and family. This gives you a chance to be wonderfully creative from these suggestions...
- A huge... or small... mixed platter of appetizers.
- Beautiful, juicy, rare roast beef on yummy crusty bread, with grainy mustard or horseradish... or chicken in avocado... or egg and bacon pie... for a main course?
- Perhaps try the sensational green salad and a Barossa potato salad, how about a heritage tomato salad too.
- Would two or more, really delicious cakes, or bowls of easy trifle, topped with gorgeous mixed berries for desserts, help?
FOOD IDEAS FOR COUPLES... a special picnic menu.
From a simple picnic in a car, to a beautiful romantic picnic! Prepare a gorgeous little picnic for a couple... just for the two of you.
Join our free newsletter "Picnic Chatter"... Let’s chat picnics!
Really EASY
PICNIC FOOD IDEAS.... this whole menu planned and stepped out for you below.
Do you need picnic food for a simple, or last minute, family picnic menu... but still want it to be delicious? We have a very tasty "cheat" for you... for those times when you're on the run, no time, but still wanting to enjoy your day. A few short cuts can happen here.
You're ready to plan your picnic? Let’s go…
Start with mixed platters of appetizers...
most picnics start here.
Choose from these easy appetizers, they look amazing!
Find a selection of appetizers for your picnic food ideas and I hope that having them sorted into two parts...
really simple appetizers and then those with a little extra preparation easy appetizer recipes is helpful for you. This will have you thinking... you won't need them all!
They are great to have handy while you chat and set up your picnic table... with a glass of something of course!
Would you like to spend time looking at the list of lunch suggestions with recipes...
Or... you're in a hurry, no time? Follow below...
The steps for preparing a quick picnic are here...
Plan the whole picnic using easy picnic food ideas, for those rushed times... here we go!
These preparation suggestions, are actually useful for any picnic.
First step...
For an EASY
PICNIC, how to prepare...
It's a good idea to read to the end before starting... then plan your shopping list.
Suggested menu...with steps to prepare these easy picnic food ideas.
- Two or three appetizers.
- Tasty quiche or flan
- Garlic bread... yum!
- Green salad... almost too good to eat.
- Little strawberry baskets for dessert... impressive and delicious.
Take a quick trip to the bakery for a quiche or flan.
While you're there, maybe check the appetizers and other bits you might need... and of course the bread to make garlic bread.
The picnic spread in this photo was made with last minute shared picnic food... and it was delicious!
... For example, one of these tarts was made by our friend Doug, gluten free and really tasty... his recipe to come, otherwise it was all "cheat" food for these picnic food ideas. Sliced ham came from the shop and salads and quiche were "touched up" and pooled... as were the appetizers too.
Not a glamorous picnic, but so simple and really memorable... and really yum!
Picnic food ideas made with a few clever additions and creative combinations.
Next...
How to make a bought flan or quiche "your own" using this recipe...
There is a large selection of quiche, flans and pies, in both your bakery and supermarket to use for your picnic food ideas . We are very spoiled for choices... but even so, they are not the same as baking your own. So for those last minute picnics it calls for a few "cheats".
A Last Minute Quiche or Flan.
Next step...
Turn on the oven... mod-hot 190 C (375F) to heat while you prepare your add-ons for the flan or quiche.
Put your purchased flan, or quiche, onto a baking tray.
Make
a few slits into the top of the flan.... being careful NOT to go
through to the base. You are only allowing the topping juices and cheese
to seep into the already baked flan.
On top, scatter fairly evenly...
- Sliced tomatoes or cherry tomatoes.
- Semi dried tomatoes if you have them.
- Chopped parsley.
- Dried Tarragon, fairly liberally scattered.
- Chopped bacon lightly fried.
- Chopped spring onions.
- Then add a good amount of bocconcini cheese balls, or grated tasty cheese over the top of everything.
- And/Or...
- Fresh, or canned asparagus cut into small lengths.
Bake in mod-hot oven 190 C (375F) for 20-35min until top is golden brown, perhaps a bit longer, just watch the color... don't let it burn... set the timer! The time can vary with the oven and how much topping you've put on.
Just add a simple salad like this... and garlic bread to your picnic food ideas.
A simple green salad goes really well with quiche and flan... and garlic bread does too.
Next step...
Garlic Bread...
Use your favorite bread for this picnic food idea... but we like a french stick, or an artisan bread if it's available and then we slice it ourselves. This way we can make thicker slices. Why not, it's a picnic with delicious food... oh so decadent!
In a bowl, add a slurp of olive oil and a few tablespoons of soft butter... not margarine! There is actually an olive oil butter which softens well and if you don't like dairy, it works well. Stir together with a knife which is also used for spreading onto the bread.
Add to the butter 1-2 crushed cloves of fresh garlic. (your choice) This makes it very tasty, but also adding herbs is great too. In the photo you will see I added dried Tarragon (this is OK used dried). Fresh herbs, are best... you don't want the bread for your picnic food ideas to taste like Christmas stuffing with dried thyme!
Cut the bread, with thick slices, almost through. It helps if it is just held together, then butter it liberally. Push bread slices back together, wrap in foil and place in the oven with the quiche.
It will take a similar time in the oven, as the quiche, to heat through and melt the butter... unless your bread is cut into thin slices and it then might need less time in the oven.
This bread goes with just about all picnic food ideas.
Next step...
Check the Picnic planning list.
While the quiche is cooking in the oven... and the garlic bread too,
start gathered the things
needed to take with you... picnic planning list in hand.
Next step...
Salad.
Place the mixed lettuce greens into a lightweight bowl (one with a fitted lid is helpful... just take the lid off and drizzle dressing over the greens at the picnic)... even add a few herbs if you have them, and an edible flower or two, just to make it look extra special.
This salad and dressing will go with any of the picnics suggested in the picnic food ideas.
Salad dressing...
In a separate little container, with a tight lid, mix 6 tablespoons of garlic olive oil with 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar... shake. Take this with you to toss over the salad just before eating.
Next step...
Easy dessert... Special honey and cinnamon cream with strawberries in little baskets.
These little strawberry baskets are soo easy to make and look awesome.... taste really good too!
Purchase a box or two of little pastry cups for these bite sized baskets.
You will find them handy, for savory bites too.
The baskets I used were quite small, but you can get bigger baskets if you wish. Just allow enough for everyone... I allowed for 4-5 per person... and a few extras!
You will need
4 tablespoons Philadelphia cream cheese... make sure it is creamy, not hard.
- 4 tablespoons thickened cream... dollop cream used this time. Could be yogurt if you prefer.
... Four tablespoons of each used here, but just make a larger amount if you need to.
Mix creams together with a fork.
Then add a teaspoon of runny honey and a good sprinkle of cinnamon... mix in... taste and adjust.
To Put Together...
This can be done, last minute, at home... or even better, at the picnic. Make sure you have a platter to put them on!
The baskets will be soggy if left too long with cream in. They might only last 3 hours with cream in.
- Approx. 12 canape cups (baskets)... bite size.
- You will also need...
- A couple of tablespoons of brown sugar... more if you have a sweet tooth.
- Enough strawberries... one for each basket.
In the base of the canape baskets, sprinkle a small amount of brown sugar... about 1/4 teaspoon in each of these small baskets.
Fill
the baskets with the cream mixture... around a teaspoon in each. (take a
teaspoon with you, if assembling at the picnic... strainer too for
icing sugar dusting) It is easy to do!
Sprinkle more brown sugar over cream... 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon, in each of the baskets... then leave to meld together.
The sugar will dissolve under and on top of the cream, making a brown layers seeping into the cream. Just leave... don't stir. You can see it seeping through, under the strawberries in the picture.
- Top each basket of cream with a strawberry, or fruit of your choice... maybe a big grape or a few raspberries. Cut the bottoms off each strawberry for a flat base, making it easy to balance in the basket of cream. I used kitchen scissors to cut the strawberry bases for these picnic food ideas.
- A few sprigs of parsley scattered between them will give the effect of the green strawberry leaves.
At the last minute, before serving, place fruit on top... then sift, with a small strainer, a small sprinkle of icing sugar to form "snow"
If
you assemble at home sit them in a container, packed so they can't move
around, but not squashed. Lid on shallow container and just pack, to be carried
level.
At last! ...
- Pack all your food and utensils into your basket... and pack hot and cold food in separate insulated bags.
- Keep whatever you wish to drink, separately in a cooler bag away from food.
This stops the chance of any bottles, or anything heavy, squashing the picnic food.
- Check the picnic planning list.
- Grab your hat... and the dog?
- Great planning... have fun!
Now you've made it, you're ready to head out to the last minute picnic....
Easy wasn't it!
To find more ideas for your picnics... choose a menu from these
easy picnic food ideas and suggestions.
For your next picnic, with more time to plan your picnic food ideas...
Click on these links for more inspiration and recipes to help you.
- Easy Appetizers … really simple suggestions without cooking... oh so simple, as you now know.
- Easy appetizer recipes for more picnic food ideas... they are easy, but do need a little cooking or preparation.
- Lunch ideas.... an assortment to choose from.
- Picnic sandwiches... always popular and I will soon show you our choices from a recent road trip... an idea for you.
- Salads... fresh and lovely to have with a picnic.
- Picnic dessert ideas.
It's amazing how many of our favorite recipes have almost been forgotten and I particularly love the old recipes we enjoyed with my Mother and Mother-in law. They were both great cooks and experts when it came to a wonderful picnic.
I'm having fun looking for those delicious picnic food ideas… searching through the old recipe books and those
favorite recipes still on scraps of paper which haven’t made it into the
recipe books.
Friends and family have also kindly given their suggestions and old favorites for you.
Check Dessert Ideas with Cakes... Wine picnic baskets coming soon.
TOP TIPS… to make the picnic food prep. easier.
- Remember… take food which is not complicated and is easily transported.
- Where possible prepare your favorite picnic food ideas the day before.
- Assemble food into light containers ready to go into the picnic basket or ice box just before you go to the picnic.
- This leaves the food in the fridge as long as possible, then packed last.
- Have the picnic planning check list handy… don’t leave anything out, or behind!
Join our free newsletter "Picnic Chatter"... Let’s chat picnics!
