A picnic is a quintessential summer activity that is as lovely for kids as it is for parents. All you need is a shady spot, a comfy blanket and… of course, the food! Your kids would be
happy with smushed peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, but why not make
something extra special that everyone is sure to enjoy? To help you
garner some culinary inspiration, we’ve consulted our roster of mommy
chef bloggers at Yummy Delicious who have provided some delicious and
simple recipes that are perfect for picnics.
Tomato, Potato, and
Quick-Pickled Red Onion Salad
Recipe from Stacie Billis, the blogger and chef at One Hungry Mama.
for the quick-pickled onions
1
1/2 organic red onions, sliced very thin (in rings or 1/2 rings)
1/2 cup organic red wine vinegar
1/2 cup water
2 organic allspice berries
2 organic whole cloves
1 organic bay leaf
2 tbsp salt
1 tbsp organic sugar
for the salad
4
large (or 6 smaller) organic russet potatoes, peeled
4 small-medium organic tomatoes
1 c quick-pickled red onions, squeezed of excess pickling liquid
1/2 c organic olive oil
1 tbsp freshly squeezed organic lemon juice (about 1/2 a lemon)
2 tbsp organic white wine vinegar (skip lemon juice and use 3 tbsp
cider vinegar for kids under 12 mos)
1 tbsp organic Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp salt
1. Make the quick-pickled red onions:
put onions in a saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil. Drain and put
in a non-reactive bowl. Mix vinegar, water, spices, salt, and sugar in the
saucepan. Bring to a boil. Pour over onions and let cool. Cover
and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. (FYI: These will keep for up to
a month.) This should make about 1 cup of drained onions—exactly what you need
for this salad.
2. Boil potatoes until the are cooked
through (don’t over cook them, or they’ll become mush in the salad). Let them
cool before cutting 1-2″ chunks.
3. Cut the tomatoes. We like
wedges—they stand up nicely to the chunks of potato. Put potatoes, tomatoes,
and pickled red onions in a large bowl.
4. Whisk together olive oil, lemon
juice (if using), vinegar, mustard, and salt. This should make approximately
1/2 a cup of dressing. Pour all of it over your salad, and you’re done!
Note: This salad is tastiest crisp and cold. While you can
certainly dig in right away, we like to let it cool in the fridge before
serving. Also, if you’re making this for one (4 person-ish) family meal and
don’t want leftovers (possible?), you can cut this recipe in half. Personally,
I think that’s crazy talk!
Italian Shrimp And White Bean Salad
Recipe From Jenna Helwig at Rosaberry.com
This salad is perfect picnic fare – easy to put together,
fresh, and flavorful. It’s also delicious tossed with pasta.
Ingredients:
1/2 pound large shrimp, cleaned and
shelled
2 tablespoons
extra-virgin olive oil, divided
salt and pepper
Cannellini beans from
one 15 oz. can, rinsed and drained
2 scallions, chopped
2 tablespoons chopped
parsley
1 clove garlic, finely
chopped
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
1 tablespoon freshly
squeezed lemon juice
- Heat one tablespoon of olive
oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the shrimp, sprinkle them
with salt and pepper, and cook until they are just pink, about five
minutes. Let the shrimp cool for a few minutes. - In a large bowl toss together
the shrimp with the beans, scallions, parsley, garlic, lemon zest, lemon
juice, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and freshly ground pepper. Taste for seasoning
and add more salt and/or pepper if necessary.
Yield: 3 servings
Naptime’s
Summer Lemonade with Mint
Recipe from Kelsey Banfield at The Naptime Chef.
For Lemonade:
2 c. freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 12 lemons)
1 c. superfine sugar (or more, if you want it sweeter)
1 c. crushed ice
8 c. water
Yields 3 quarts
For Mint Syrup:
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. water
1 c. fresh mint leaves, chopped
1. Pour all ingredients into a blender and puree until
completely smooth. You may have to do this in two batches if your blender is
small.
2. To make simple syrup, pour water, sugar and mint leaves
into a small saucepan over medium heat. Swirl (do not stir!) water around until
sugar is completely dissolved. Turn off heat and allow to cool.
3. Pour mint syrup into lemonade and stir until completely
combined.
4. Serve over ice.
5. Relax.
Zuchini Mini Muffins
Recipe by Jessi Walter of Cupcake Kids!
Ingredients:
(Makes 24 mini or 12 regular)
3 C grated zucchini (about
2 zucchini)
2/3 C melted butter
1 1/3 C sugar
2 eggs, beaten
2 t vanilla
2 t baking soda
pinch of salt
3 C AP flour
2 t cinnamon
1/2 t nutmeg
1 C raisins
dried cranberries and/or walnuts
1. Grate zucchini with a
cheese grater or a food processor.
2. In a large bowl combine the sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Stir in the grated
zucchini and then the melted butter.
3. Sprinkle the baking soda and salt over the zucchini mixture and mix in.
4. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Stir these
dry ingredients into the zucchini mixture.
5. Stir in raisins, cranberries or walnuts if using.
6. Coat each muffin cup in your muffin pan with a little butter or vegetable
oil spray.
7. Distribute the muffin dough equally among the cups, filling the cups up
completely.
8. Bake on the middle rack until muffins are golden brown, about 25 to 30
minutes.
9. Set on wire rack to cool for 5 minutes. Remove muffins from the tin let cool
another 20 minutes.
10. Note, if you are including walnuts and dried fruit, you will likely have
more batter than is needed for 12 or 24 muffins.
