Simple picnic treats

Now for those of us that go on picnics often, planning the food can be a bit of a problem. No one wants to eat the same things time and time again! Let’s be honest, a cold chicken drumstick can be a little dull.

Your picnic lunches need not be boring. A little creative thinking, an hour spent in the kitchen and you too can spruce up your picnic lunches. Here are a few ideas.

Starter

A good picnic meal needs a starter and it really can be quick and easy to make, yet delicious to eat.

Nachos with Guacamole Dip

A crunchy chip and a mouthwatering dip! What could be easier. The only bit of work you will need to do here is to make your guacamole dip.

You will need the following:

Avocado (peeled)
Garlic (peeled and chopped)
½ cup of tomato, onion and coriander salsa
Lemon juice (2 teaspoons)
Salt (½ teaspoon)

Place the ingredients into a bowl, except the salsa. Mash the avocado with a fork, you can make it as chunky or fine as you prefer. Make sure everything is combined properly and then place the salsa on top.

Now you could serve this with the nachos as mentioned, but for those who are more health conscious, this dip goes very well with vegetable sticks.

Salad

Every picnic needs a salad. Normally this would be something like a potato or beetroot salad, but why not try something different.

Stacked Salad

This stacked salad is not only a great looking dish but also extremely tasty. You will need the following ingredients.

Plain low fat yoghurt (1 cup)
Light mayonnaise (½ cup)
Chives (fresh, 2 tablespoons, chopped)
Iceberg lettuce (1 head, chopped)
Frozen corn (350 grams, thawed)
Frozen peas (350 grams, thawed)
8 plum tomatoes (chopped)
500g chicken breasts (cooked, cut into strips)
Cheddar cheese (shredded, 2 cups)
30 millilitres ranch dressing

Place the yoghurt, mayo, chives and ranch dressing in a bowl, mix well and leave in the refrigerator. In another large glass bowl begin forming layers with half the lettuce followed by corn, tomatoes, chicken strips, peas and finally the remaining lettuce. Place the cheese over the top and leave in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours. At your picnic destination, toss the salad with the dressing and serve,

Sandwiches

A sandwich… really? Everybody bring sandwiches to a picnic. Not everybody brings one of these sandwiches though!

Prawn Wrap

This wrap will go down a treat with everyone! You will need the following ingredients.

Iceberg lettuce (1 head, chopped)
Celery (3 sticks, chopped)
Red Onion (½, chopped)
Plum tomatoes (4, chopped)
Dill (fresh, 2 tablespoons, chopped)
Prawns (250 grams, fresh or frozen)
Ranch dressing (¾ cup)
Wraps (6, flour tortillas)

Combine all your ingredients in a bowl, except the tortillas, but you knew that right! Now place some filling in each tortilla, but do not overfill. Wrap them up like an envelope or however you prefer, as long as the precious mixture doesn’t leak out. It is best to do these when you reach your picnic destination or the tortillas can get soggy. Cut in half or into bite sized pieces and serve.

Dessert

A picnic isn’t a picnic without a dessert! This cake is very easy and quick to make.

Peach Cake

For the peach cake, you will need the following ingredients.

Yellow cake mix (butter flavour, 520g)
Pecan nuts (¾ cup, coarsely chopped)
Peach pie filling (600 grams)
Vegetable oil (⅔ of a cup)
Eggs (2)
Vanilla extract (1 teaspoon)

Combine all the ingredients in a mixing bowl. Be sure to mix through thoroughly. Leave covered. Preheat an oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Spray a 20 x 30 cm baking pan with non-stick spray. Pour the cake mix into the baking pan and bake for around 45 minutes. Test often with a toothpick. If it is clean when it is removed from the cake, remove the pan from the oven. This can be served warm but obviously at your picnic it is served cold. Add a dollop of cream to just make it a little bit more decadent.