picnic Archives - Good Food St. Louis

A Picnic in the Park

August 17, 2021

Art Hill in Summer

More people are hanging out in the city parks these days. And, why not? They’re beautifully manicured, spacious, and healthy.

Robin, who lives near Forest Park, uses its courts, and running and biking paths regularly. She called last weekend, when the weather was especially mild and asked if I’d like to join in a spontaneous picnic on Art Hill.

“There’ll be just the four of us—JC and me, you and Inda,” she said, “and we’ll be well spaced.”

We had a view overlooking the pond at the base of Art Hill.

An Evening on the Ground

I was at first reluctant, having not picnicked on the ground for years. But Robin agreed to bring one of those collapsible cloth chairs for me.

“It has a pocket in the arm of the chair for your drink,” she said.

I inquired if it also had a pull out tray and foot rest. It didn’t. But there was a slot for an iPhone, she said. I was okay with that.

I began to saddle up for an evening in the park.

I’m comfortably seated, while Robin, Inda, and Claude (the pooch) are comfortably reclining.

Spreading Out

We unfurled our ground cloths on the grassy hillside and opened Inda’s picnic pack. Yes, you can now carry the makings for an impromptu picnic on your back when hiking or biking.

The cleverly designed pack (for 2 or 4) has slots for small dishes and utensils. There’s a wine and blanket holder, too, even a small cutting board.

Perfect for picnicking with the von Trapp family in an Alpine meadow.

Claude takes his owner for a picnic in the park.

A Bring-What-You-Have Picnic Meal

Robin brought along a bottle of wine, homemade hummus, and a yummy mushroom frittata, fresh form the oven.

Inda set out a tasty faro salad (made from the ancient grain), chips, and some juicy peaches.

A healthy plate of happiness.

Lights On; Bats Out

Over the course of the evening, we ate. We talked. We told stories. We laughed. We played with Claude. We solved world problems.

As it grew darker, lights along the footpaths came on. A nice touch for the evening. But when bats started flying overhead, we packed our gear and headed for the car..

Summer Salads: Quick and Easy

August 9, 2015

Summer Salads are fresh and colorful like this one with chickpeas, edamame, corn and bell peppers.

Any plan to eat outdoors calls for salads—fresh, colorful, tasty, and easy to throw together. This healthy summer salad has lots of munch, that comes from a medley of fresh corn, edamame, chickpeas, green onions, and red peppers mingled together in a tangy honey-lime vinaigrette.

You can count on this recipe being a sure fire hit at a backyard soiree or picnic in the park. And it travels well. In the unlikely event there are leftovers, serve at lunch with a sandwich. Recipe is adapted from Once Upon a Chef.

Garbanzo Edamame Salad

Ingredients: Serves 4

1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 red bell pepper or 4 plum tomatoes, diced
2 ears cooked corn, kernels cut from cob
1 cup cooked edamame
3 green onions, finely sliced
1/4 cup fresh lime juice, from 2 limes
1 large garlic clove, minced
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons honey
1-1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tsp. ground cumin

Directions:

Combine salad items: chickpeas, red pepper, corn, edamame, and green onions in bowl. Combine vinaigrette items in jar and shake, adding oil slowly toward last. Pour over vegetables and toss to mix. Cover salad and refrigerate until ready to serve.

This next salad is a variation on the standard caprese salad and a way to use all those cherry tomatoes. The recipe is adapted from Burpee Home Gardens.

Easy Tomato Caprese Salads are almost too pretty to eat. (Dish by Stacey Newman)

Easy Tomato Caprese Salads

Ingredients: Serves 4

1 pt. cherry tomatoes
1/2 lb. fresh 1″ Mozzarella balls
1 Tbs. extra virgin olive oil
Fresh basil leaves, about a dozen leaves
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Directions:

Cut the cherry tomatoes and mozzarella balls in half and place in a bowl. Drizzle the olive oil over the tomatoes and mozzarella followed by some salt and pepper to taste. Wrap the basil leaves lengthwise into a tight roll and chiffonade, i.e., cut into thin strips. Sprinkle the chiffonade of basil over all. Spoon the mixture into salad bowls and serve immediately.

Kitchen Note: This salad depends on the finest and freshest ingredients. Use your best extra virgin olive oil, freshly picked tomatoes, coarse sea salt and fresh, ground black pepper. If you want to complicate this recipe, you can turn it into a Tomato Niçoise with the addition of black olives, capers, and chopped anchovy fillets.