We have about two months left of summer picnics, from big family reunions, to church potlucks, to just one or two at a park or the beach. Our family has a couple of picnics coming up later this month, and I was thinking about the many food options for picnicking on a budget. Of course, I thought I would turn to you friends for your suggestions. Let's swap ideas.
So, I'm looking for very budget-friendly ideas in each of the following categories:
- main dishes
- fruit and vegetable sides
- starchy sides
- desserts
- beverages
Here's my list.
main dish: non-mayo chicken salad sandwiches on buns, using leftover roasted chicken, lemon juice, dijon mustard, olive oil, celery, salt, pepper, herbs, garlic/onion powder
fruits and vegetables: watermelon slices
starchy sides: pasta salad with vegetables added, vinaigrette dressing
dessert: fruit layer bar cookies, the kind with a cookie base, a layer of fruit filling, and a topping of crumb mixture
beverages: infused water -- cucumber, mint, and melon infused water, or raspberry and basil infused water
What would you bring on a picnic while sticking to a budget?
I guess it would depend on where the picnic was and what the facilities were like. When I think about taking a picnic on a hike or to a park, I think peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, apples and carrots, and cookies. Maybe lemonade to drink, but probably water. Not very exciting, but it would be more about the outing than the food. If I were going to upgrade that a bit, I like cold fried chicken, pasta salad, veggies and humus, fruit-whatever is in season, and cookies. Those are not very imaginative, but will get the job done.
ReplyDeleteHi Live and Learn,
DeleteI like cold fried chicken, too, for picnics. I'm not very good at making fried chicken. I wonder if cold roasted chicken pieces would also be good? Or a shake and bake type chicken, but served chilled? Pasta salad is always a hit at picnics, and very versatile in what can be added to it.
I'm assuming you are looking at feeding a group, not just your immediate family. If a grill is available, something simple (hotdogs or brats) would be fun. Fruit in-season (maybe a fruit bowl?) is a favorite of mine. Potato salad. Potato chips/tortilla chips with salsa. Veggie tray with hummus/ranch dressing. Non-melty (no chocolate!) cookies. Iced tea and lemonade. It will be fun to see what everyone else suggests.
ReplyDeleteHi Kris,
DeleteGood point on the non-melty cookies! A veggie tray with hummus sounds filling and provides some protein. Some of our local parks have grills, so hot dogs or bratwurst would work and are always enjoyed at picnics.
I tried to post earlier, but must have forgotten to hit "publish" or something. Our family's best picnic snack ever was probably when I took one of those lemon bundt cakes with the lemon-juice simple syrup instead of frosting, which our moms used to make in the 60s and 70s, on a camping trip. 113 degrees, sitting in the shade, trying to catch a breeze, a couple of pieces of that cake with some cool water to drink was heavenly! Happy outings, everybody! Sara
ReplyDeleteColeslaw or potato salad as sides, both being very inexpensive to make at home as well as delicious (but I'll admit that I'm the weirdo who doesn't care much for pasta aside from spaghetti, and especially not cold in salads). Brownies as dessert. Fruit and veggie assortment, and then maybe a simply cooked (crockpot, grill, or broiler) but pre-brinerated chicken (I cut breasts down into portions, usually 3, for uniformity when cooking/serving) with a dipping sauce on the side. My menu may be a little different in that sandwiches tend to be problematic as someone with celiac. There ARE buns to be bought, but they are more expensive, often break more easily than wheat-based ones, and also tend to be higher in carbohydrates.
ReplyDeleteCat, don't you also find that GF bread products have their own set of potential digestive/other problems? Bean flours, gums, etc., aren't too digestible, either, though they help make other grain/seed flours "act" more like glutinous ones. Also, I don't know about celiac, but for simple gluten intolerance, anything with yeast isn't always a good idea, anyway. (Sigh.) Often I think it's more useful to find different dishes than to keep looking for GF versions of "normal" food. I'm sorry you deal with celiac! Sara
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