Event planning - December 2007

Perfect picnics

Picnics aren't just about food - they are about the setting, the activities and the friends and family. The word Picnic actually comes from the French pique-nique, meaning "a fashionable social entertainment" in which each guest brings a contribution to the feast. While the 18th century French and English aristocracy enjoyed servant attended formal picnics with chairs and table settings of fine china and crystal, modern picnics are usually more casual affairs, (although there's no reason you can't break the rules).

To have a successful picnic you need to be prepared! Why not have a picnic kit ready to go anytime. All you need is a large travel rug, picnic container (I use a backpack picnic kit given to me as a gift - great for leaving hands free to chase toddlers), utensils with forks, knives, spoons, plates, plastic cups, tea towel, napkins, corkscrew, can opener, salt & pepper (small containers or disposable packets), plastic bag for rubbish and essential first aid items such as insect repellant, band aids, antiseptic cream, sunscreen and lip balm. You can also add some elegant plastic wine or champagne flutes to the kit as well.

Choosing a location is easy - almost anywhere outdoors can be a picnic spot. My children also love an indoors picnic on a rainy day and it definitely helps pass the time without reverting to the small square box. Most council parks have great facilities for picnics with tables, playground equipment and clean toilets. Go online to your local council website and check out their parks and facilities to help make the choice easier. Beaches are a great picnic place as all that swimming makes for a healthy appetite and nature reserves are fun for older children who like to do a little detective work. With a little research beforehand you can make up a sheet with different animals or plants featured at the reserve for the children to find - why not give one to Dad as well while you stay back to unpack the picnic (& catch a little R&R!).

With picnic recipes I have found the simpler the better. If there are a lot of people coming you can have each family bring a different meal e.g. nibbles, cold meats, salads, breads & drinks, fruit etc. or for a small family picnic a few of our favourites are:

• Small dinner rolls filled with mild salami, tomato & camembert cheese or avocado (my little boy substitutes ham for the salami - the littler girl will eat anything).
  
  
• Small tortilla wraps with roast chicken & caeser salad (buy the salad already prepared).
  
  
• If the picnic spot has a bbq take along some buttered hot dog buns and cook up some sausages and onions. My children like the hot dog buns cut in half with chipolata sausages and plenty of cheese and sauce.
  
  
• Mini bacon, tomato & parmesan quiches made the day before are great wrapped in alfoil and put on the bbq to warm through.
  
  
• Easy fruit salad with grapes, strawberries, watermelon and rockmelon.
  
  
• Popcorn (careful with young children).
  
  
• Chocolate Chip Cookies or any favourite sweet treat.
  
  
• Juice and plenty of water.
  
  
• Bottle of wine for the adults (don't forget something non-alcoholic for the designated drivers).
  
  
• Thermos of coffee or hot water and tea bags, sugar and milk

Freeze water the night before (only fill to ¾ as water expands during freezing) and use these as chillers in the esky or picnic kit for cold meats and salads. Also check for any allergies amongst guests.

Don't forget to pack some great activities if space allows such as a Frisbee, ball, kite, bubbles for the littlies, Boules even the pet dog if council allows.

Picnics should convey a sense of freedom in being outdoors together and the simple pleasure of eating a family meal under the open sky while spending that rare commodity of time with each other creating a special memory.

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