Picnic Time

PICNIC WEEK!

What a lovely week it was last week, with Friday coming in at 34℃ in some places.

This week is a little more comfortable and it is National Picnic Week! Perfect weather for those picnics.

You can’t always guarantee the weather for a picnic in our lovely country, when Mr Bun and I lived in Spain we always had a beach picnic at the weekend as you could guarantee the sun!

As a child I remember being caught out with the weather and enjoying a ‘car picnic’ but Grandad Bun didn’t like the crumbs in the car, so it had to have a hoovering on the return home.

There were a few staples to our picnics

· Picnic blanket

· Flask

· Sandwiches

· Sausage rolls/Drumsticks

· Wotsits and Skips

· Home-made cake or biscuits

· Paper Straws

· Plenty of Tupperware!!

We had Tupperware for the drinks, food large, small, and individual containers, there wasn’t lots of plastic bags or wrapping for sandwiches in my day!

One thing we never had though was a picnic basket, with the plates and cups securely tied in and then room for those picnic foods. I always wanted one, reading about them in my famous 5 books and the lashings of ginger beer, we had Dandelion and Burdock instead (very tasty if you’ve not tried or sometimes a can of cream soda from Marks and Spencers).

Picnic food is out there now though, an aisle of its own really.

Search the supermarkets:

42 items in Tesco... Pork pies, Savoury eggs through to falafels, gluten free goodies and of course Mr Kipling.

A massive 2094 items in Sainsburys! From categories of frozen, vegetable, salad to Delicatessen and Household!

Waitrose comes in with 194 items with crisps, fruit, biscuits to sushi platters!

There is a BIG market out there for this grazing food.

So, what to choose… there is so much, but I say get the kids involved and it is also a great way for them to try new foods, they can pick what they want from the array of picnic foods and if you keep them healthy with some treats too, they will hopefully get a rainbow on their plate.

I love getting them helping making sandwiches, if they know what’s in them, they will eat them, use cutters you have for biscuits and cut into stars, circles, animals, the list is endless even the xmas tree!

Another favourite is to make fruit and savoury sticks, get them to thread grapes, cheese, ham, strawberries, sausages, melon, cucumber, tomatoes, and other goodies onto kebab sticks, throw in the odd marshmallow or sponge cake for the sweet sticks.

Pastries are fab for those leftovers, any curry, chill, bolognaise, baked beans and mash, cheese, onion, and ham, put them into some ready rolled pastry and bake them, a good hearty filling and using up those leftovers, especially if it isn’t enough for a meal.

You can also buy a bread mix, make it up according to the packet, but divide it into 4 pieces, roll each one into a rectangle around 20x15cm and get them to sprinkle over fillings, cheese 'N' pickle, choc spread and raisins, ham and tomato, pizza style with tomato, cheese, and some pizza toppings! Roll them up, cut into 4 pieces, place them in a tray bake, rise, then bake for around 20 minutes and lots of tear and share sandwiches.

If you do, just remember to prepare the ingredients first, younger children find it easier to have it all in front of them and place it on the stick, sandwich, or bread dough.

So, enjoy your picnic week. Think healthy but not too messy

As Picnic Week is here,

Time for outside eating, lets cheer!

There is lots you can pack,

Healthy and some sweet snacks,

Just try not to forget,

In the UK you may get wet

So, pack that brolly and mac

And still enjoy the snacks!

Mrs Bun xx