Hi all,

I have some friends comming for a visit and we said we'd go for a picnic and
spend the day outdoors. I'd like to make a fancy gourmet like picnic basket
with not your usualy foods. Have any suggestions? So far I thought of
grilling some veggies, & grill thick pieces of bread & top it off with some
brie or blue cheese.

Take care,
SPOONS

"SPOONS" > wrote in message
...
> Hi all,
>
> I have some friends comming for a visit and we said we'd go for a picnic and
> spend the day outdoors. I'd like to make a fancy gourmet like picnic basket
> with not your usualy foods. Have any suggestions? So far I thought of
> grilling some veggies, & grill thick pieces of bread & top it off with some
> brie or blue cheese.
>
> Take care,
> SPOONS


Just when was the last time you had some cold "high quality" nicely herbed cold
roasted chicken?
I would use the chicken as a foundation and just build around that.

Crusty bread
Pate
Cold chicken
Mixed cold vegetable salad in a vinaigrette ( a nice Julianne cut) ( easy just
cut, blanch & shock)
Fresh fruit
Nice cheese
Well chilled dry white wine (please not a chardonnay)

Dimitri

Thanks Dimitri I knew I could count on you. :-)

Take care,
SPOONS

"Dimitri" > wrote in message
. ..
>
> "SPOONS" > wrote in message
> ...
>> Hi all,
>>
>> I have some friends comming for a visit and we said we'd go for a picnic
>> and spend the day outdoors. I'd like to make a fancy gourmet like picnic
>> basket with not your usualy foods. Have any suggestions? So far I
>> thought of grilling some veggies, & grill thick pieces of bread & top it
>> off with some brie or blue cheese.
>>
>> Take care,
>> SPOONS
>
>
> Just when was the last time you had some cold "high quality" nicely herbed
> cold roasted chicken?
> I would use the chicken as a foundation and just build around that.
>
> Crusty bread
> Pate
> Cold chicken
> Mixed cold vegetable salad in a vinaigrette ( a nice Julianne cut) ( easy
> just cut, blanch & shock)
> Fresh fruit
> Nice cheese
> Well chilled dry white wine (please not a chardonnay)
>
> Dimitri
>

SPOONS wrote:
> Thanks Dimitri I knew I could count on you. :-)
>=20
> Take care,
> SPOONS
>=20
> "Dimitri" > wrote in message=20
> . ..
>=20
>>"SPOONS" > wrote in message=20
...
>>
>>>Hi all,
>>>
>>>I have some friends comming for a visit and we said we'd go for a picn=
ic=20
>>>and spend the day outdoors. I'd like to make a fancy gourmet like pic=
nic=20
>>>basket with not your usualy foods. Have any suggestions? So far I=20
>>>thought of grilling some veggies, & grill thick pieces of bread & top =
it=20
>>>off with some brie or blue cheese.
>>>
>>>Take care,
>>>SPOONS
>>
>>
>>Just when was the last time you had some cold "high quality" nicely her=
bed=20
>>cold roasted chicken?
>>I would use the chicken as a foundation and just build around that.
>>
>>Crusty bread
>>Pate
>>Cold chicken
>>Mixed cold vegetable salad in a vinaigrette ( a nice Julianne cut) ( ea=
sy=20
>>just cut, blanch & shock)
>>Fresh fruit
>>Nice cheese
>>Well chilled dry white wine (please not a chardonnay)
>>
>>Dimitri
>>
>=20
>=20
>=20
Try this:

Cold Noodle Salad


1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup soy sauce
4 teaspoons sesame oil
1 pound soba noodles, cooked until tender and refreshed in ice water
1/2 cup thinly sliced green onions, cut on the bias
1/2 cup bean sprouts
1/2 cup thinly sliced carrots
1/2 cup cucumber, peeled, seeded, and thinly sliced
1 cup lightly crushed toasted cashews
3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons black sesame seeds


In a small bowl, whisk together honey, soy sauce and sesame oil. To the=20
noodles, add green onions, bean sprouts, carrots, cucumber, cashews,=20
cilantro, sesame seeds, and the soy mixture and mix thoroughly.

Notes:
I find putting the honey into the microwave for a few seconds (depending =

how much is in the container) makes it easier to measure.

I put the honey, soy and sesame oil into the microwave for 5 seconds.=20
This makes it easier to whisk together.

I use 1/3 of a cup of honey instead of =BC cup.

SPOONS wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> I have some friends comming for a visit and we said we'd go for a
> picnic and spend the day outdoors. I'd like to make a fancy gourmet
> like picnic basket with not your usualy foods. Have any suggestions?
> So far I thought of grilling some veggies, & grill thick pieces of
> bread & top it off with some brie or blue cheese.
>
> Take care,
> SPOONS

It depends on whether or not you are paranoid about leaving food out for a
picnic. I take a styrofoam cooler and then you can do something like
spatchocked grilled cornish hens. Serve it with the breads and cheeses,
with fruit and salad if you like.

Jill

In article >,
"SPOONS" > wrote:

> I have some friends comming for a visit and we said we'd go for a picnic and
> spend the day outdoors. I'd like to make a fancy gourmet like picnic basket
> with not your usualy foods. Have any suggestions? So far I thought of
> grilling some veggies, & grill thick pieces of bread & top it off with some
> brie or blue cheese.

That sounds good. I'd add some fresh fruit and a salad of some sort,
and maybe a dessert. Lemonade, fresh squeezed, or that sparkling stuff
in the bottles, is nice. Don't forget napkins, a blanket for the
ground and utensils.

Regards,
Ranee

Remove do not & spam to e-mail me.

"She seeks wool and flax, and works with willing hands." Prov 31:13

http://arabianknits.blogspot.com/
http://talesfromthekitchen.blogspot.com/

Brie or Bleu Cheese ? Why not both ?

I'd also add some olives somehow. A tapanade spread for example, or
just hit an olive bar. For a quick olive spread, mash some kalmata
olives with a bit of (olive) oil and lemon juice. You can get fancy and
add sundried tomatoes and other stuff if you want, but that alone will
be good.

I like the idea of grilled veggies, either as a salad, or as a crudite
plate.

You may also try an easy tomato dish : slice tomatoes, put a bit of
fresh mozzarella and basil on each slice. No need to cook, but you can
do that too.

Another simple thing is a chilled frittata. I add all kinds of things
to these, onions, herbs, meats, cheeses, sometimes even guacamole.
Chill then slice into wedges, or cut into small strips and serve as a
salad.

Add whatever ripe fruit is available. Where I'm at, we are just getting
cherries, stawberries, and nectarines.

I agree with Dimitri's wine suggestion, but would add that real lemon
or lime-aide is a good alternative for non-drinkers.

Dean G.

SPOONS wrote:
>> Hi all,
>>
>> I have some friends comming for a visit and we said we'd go for a
>> picnic and spend the day outdoors. I'd like to make a fancy gourmet
>> like picnic basket with not your usualy foods. Have any
>> suggestions? So far I thought of grilling some veggies, & grill
>> thick pieces of bread & top it off with some brie or blue cheese.
>>
Along with the other wonderful suggestions, I would think about some
gazpacho.. wonderfully cooling on a hot day.

Debbie

"Dimitri" > wrote in message
. ..
>
> "SPOONS" > wrote in message
> ...
> > Hi all,
> >
> > I have some friends comming for a visit and we said we'd go for a picnic
and
> > spend the day outdoors. I'd like to make a fancy gourmet like picnic
basket
> > with not your usualy foods. Have any suggestions? So far I thought of
> > grilling some veggies, & grill thick pieces of bread & top it off with
some
> > brie or blue cheese.
> >
> > Take care,
> > SPOONS
>
>
> Just when was the last time you had some cold "high quality" nicely herbed
cold
> roasted chicken?
> I would use the chicken as a foundation and just build around that.
>
> Crusty bread
> Pate
> Cold chicken
> Mixed cold vegetable salad in a vinaigrette ( a nice Julianne cut) ( easy
just
> cut, blanch & shock)
> Fresh fruit
> Nice cheese
> Well chilled dry white wine (please not a chardonnay)
>
> Dimitri

Hmmmm, sounds good to me too - makes me wanna picnic right now.


Instead of the still wine though, how about a nice dry Cava? (or two!) In my
mind, ya can't beat bubbles at a picnic ',;~}~





Shaun aRe - Oh, and with the fruit, how about chilled passionfruit, served
with no more than a teaspoon! Hmmmm...