The Perfect Picnic for Pickle-nic Week

 

 This week in honor of the world's first Pickle-nic Week we decided to invite some good pickle-loving friends over  for a picnic lunch to help celebrate with us. A Pickle-nic shared is a Pickle-nic joy doubled!  That's my story and I'm sticking to it!

 

Pickles are the perfect picnic food don't you think?  Sweet/sour/crunchy and perfectly portable!  Of course our weather these past few weeks hasn't been all that Picnic friendly, so for safety we planned a Pickle-nic worth indoor picnic and of course Mrs Elswood's pickles were the centre of our picnic table feast. They are the only pickle I have ever been able to find over here in the UK that compares in taste and crunch to the pickles I was used to from back home.  I miss the pickles from home and its so nice to finally have a tasty alternative here that I can munch on and enjoy just as much! 

 

Their sandwich slices were perfect in my ham and pickle buns.  Such a simple make also, with plenty of salty ham, sweet pickle crunch and some sharp grainy mustard.  Simply layer well buttered soft rolls that you have spread with grainy mustard (I used German) with some  Mrs Elswood's Sandwich slices and some finely sliced ham.  Perfectly delicious!  These went down a real treat! 

This was a picnic I decided to throw together basically at the last minute, having only decided to plan it on Monday evening.  I had been wanting to have our friends over for a while but had been waiting for good weather to do so in. I finally told myself "The heck with the weather!" we will just invite them anyways and weather come what may, we'll either do it indoors or outside.  I planned something which worked both ways. 

My Perfect Picnic List 

- Suitable seating, blankets and folding chairs for outdoors, or plenty of seating indoors 

- A cooler or basket to hold the food whilst transporting (outdoor picnics) or a suitable surface to spread everything out on (indoors)

- Freshly made sandwiches, suitably wrapped. Nothing overly messy. If your sandwiches are going to be in the car or basket for too long, make sure you also include little ice blocks to keep everything cold, or else avoid fillings which include mayonnaise. Indoors, make your sandwiches ahead of time, and keep them covered and chilled in the refrigerator, putting them out just before serving.

- Something crunchy to enjoy along with your sandwiches. Crisp pickles. Crisp raw vegetables (with dip!). Potato chips. 

- Something sweet to satisfy everyone's sweet tooth.  Sturdy cakes that travel well and are not overly fussy with tons of frosting and decorations. Fresh fruit/berries. Cookies and squares, again not too fussy or mussy. 

- Plenty of cold refreshing drinks. Carbonated don't travel well. I like to make ice cold lemonade and then pack it into large sealable containers with plenty of ice. Of course if you are indoors transportation isn't a problem, neither is keeping everything cool until you are ready to enjoy.

- paper napkins, plates, plastic/wooden knives/forks/spoons, cups

- scintillating conversation and company, plus some calming background music, nothing to gregarious or distracting. Gentle and soothing is the key. 

MAKE SURE YOU INVITE EVERYONE TO LEAVE THEIR MOBILES/LAPTOPS AND OTHER DISTRACTING MEDIA ASIDE FOR THESE FEW HOURS!  This will greatly add to the enjoyment of the time you are able to spend together!

 

Aside from the Ham & Pickle Buns I made a few other sandwiches.  I did Cheese & Tomato on whole grain bread (Just layer in grated strong cheddar cheese, and sliced ripe tomatoes, making sure you drain as much of the pips out beforehand), Cheese & Pickle (exactly what it says and very popular) and some Chicken Salad Croissants.  I made a delicious Curried Chicken Salad and then layered it in fresh buttered croissants along with some baby rocket. 

  

Curried Chicken Salad

Yield: Makes about 3 cups

Author: Marie Rayner

A delicious chicken salad that you can either enjoy on its own spooned over lettuce or in a tasty sandwich!

ingredients:

• 110g good quality full fat mayonnaise (1/2 cup)
• 120g full fat Greek yogurt (1/2 cup)
• 1 heaped TBS mango chutney
• 1 tsp fresh lime juice
• 3 to 4 tsp curry powder
• salt and black pepper to taste
• 250g cooked chicken, cubed or shredded (2 cups)
• 2 spring onions, trimmed and finely sliced
• 4 TBS flaked toasted almonds
• 12 grapes quartered
• 1 stalk of fresh celery,  chopped
• 3 TBS raisins

instructions:

How to cook Curried Chicken Salad

1. In a bowl whisk together the yogurt, mayonnaise, lime juice, chutney, curry powder and seasoning until smooth.  Fold in the remaining ingredients, stirring well to combine.  Taste and adjust seasoning as required.  Store in a covered container in the refrigerator. This will keep in the refrigerator for about 2- 3 days. I would not keep it any longer. (Of course this depends on when you cooked the chicken. I never keep cooked chicken any longer than 4 days in the refrigerator.)

Created using The Recipes Generator

 

The chicken croissants went down a real treat along with the ham and pickle sandwiches, although the chicken croissants were a tad bit messy, but in a very good way if you know what I mean!  

 

For the something crunchy I provided some potato chips.  You could use ruffled chips or tortilla chips and have a dip as well if you wanted. Of course plenty of crunchy pickles are nice and yes, the vegetables and dips!  Did you know you can stuff larger pickles with cheese?  Just do a search on google.  I found some that had been wrapped in bacon and fried.  OH MY GOODNESS.  Not exactly Pickle-nic worthy, but hey ho!

 

For my something sweet I served  fresh berries from the garden and cake.  I had baked two cakes for the occasion . . . 

 

Swedish Visiting Cake on the left and French Yogurt Cake on the right.  

 

We enjoyed them with the berries and I'll be honest with you because we were at home I got some Clotted Cream Ice Cream out of the freezer and we each had a scoop of that on top as well! 

 

And of course we washed it all down with an assortment of refreshing drinks.  I had ice cold sparkling water which I served with a twist of lemon over ice and chilled sparkling lemonade.  Both were nice and went very well.

 

Everyone loves these Ham & Pickle Sandwiches.  Mrs Elswood's Sweet Cucumber Sandwich slices worked perfectly in these and we even enjoyed a few on their own, because who doesn't enjoy the extra crunch of a pickle, sliced or not! These taste very similar to the Bread & Butter Pickles from back home. Great on burgers, hot dogs, sandwiches and even chopped up and popped into your salads. I wish they would do a sweet pickle relish like we have back home. So, so, so tasty! 

 

This was a wonderful feast to be enjoyed for Pickle-nic week.  Everyone was really happy with the food.  It wasn't stressful for me to prepare and made for a very relaxing meal.  Picnics indoors or out! You can't beat them for fun, fun, fun!  

A Picnic Memory -

I must have been 10 or 11 years old and my friend and I decided we wanted to go on a picnic.  My mom made me a peanut butter sandwich and I had that in a brown paper bag along with a few cookies.  I also had a cold bottle of Nesbitts Orange Soda Pop.  My friend had something similar.  We popped our lunches into our bicycle baskets and then took off for the great outdoors on a grand adventure.  We ended up in Torbrook, which was quite a tough bicycle ride partway up the nearby South mountain.  We parked our bicycles and ate our lunches on a hillside looking down on the old Baptist church, with the sounds of bees buzzing, all hot and sweaty from our exertion in getting there, but I can tell you, you have never tasted a better or more delicious peanut butter sandwich than that one!  We finished it off by eating some green apples we picked from a near-by tree and went to bed with belly-aches that night, but oh what a wonderful memory we had built!  

I do believe a Picnic is a wonderful excuse to crack open your inner-child and dust it off for a few hours!!!

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A Valentines Picnic for Two

 

With Valentines Day coming up this week, and my stove being out of commission, I thought it would be fun to do something different and create a delicious picnic for my sweetie pie and I to share for the occasion.  Its really fun to do and really doesn't take a lot of work.  The weather has been right miserable lately, but that doesn't mean we can't still enjoy a picnic.  Some of the nicest picnics can be shared right within the four walls of your comfy home!

 

The centre piece of my picnic was a delicious Buffalo Chicken Salad that I threw together.  You will find the recipe below for a basic chicken salad and 10 variations.  This is just one of them, and I can tell you it is really tasty! 

 

I had a good old rummage around the refrigerator this morning while Todd was out and by the time he came home, I had a picnic feast for two more than ready.  We had some leftover potato salad and coleslaw from the other day, so that was packed  into a container for sharing . . . 

  

I always have lots of cheeses on hand, chutney's and crackers and so I did up a small cheese tray for us to enjoy.  I used some vintage white cheddar, Danish blue, wensleydale with cranberries and boursin cheeses.  I put the chutney into a small Bonne Maman Jar and an assortment of crackers and some butter for spreading in a sandwich container. Be sure to include a knife for cutting up the cheeses and a spoon for the chutney.  

  

You will want a toasted baguette or crisp breads to have with the chicken salad, or even some salad greens.  Todd isn't one much for salad greens, so I had soft baguettes for him. No toasting today as there is no oven.

 

There was a Melton Mowbray Pork Pie in the refrigerator (Todd's favourite pie) and some cheese and onion rolls, so I added a container with them, as well as some English Mustard for Todd to enjoy with a slice of pie.  I also had some black and green grapes, so I washed some of them and put them into another container.  

Something sweet is always welcome, so I added a container of Todd's favourite biscuits/cookies and some fruit yogurts. 

 

I also added the required cutlery, dinner plates and glasses, along with some tea light candles (for romance),  a blanket to sit on, a book of poetry to share with each other and a fun game to play. 

  

A bottle of sparkling apple juice was the finishing touch.  I then packed it into our picnic basket . . .  its a red metal one with chrome handles that I bought several years back.  I think its really pretty, although in all truth a wicker one is better as this one is quite heavy once you get it packed.  It didn't all quite fit inside, but no matter we weren't going very far . . . 

 

And with there being two of us, we carried the juice separately along with the bread, games and poetry.  As I said, we did not have far to go!

 

Todd was pleasantly surprised when he got home.  I put some nice music on for us to listen to and in all truth, we sat at the table  . . .  these old bones of ours are not fond of floor sitting, not anymore  . . . 

 

It was a really nice spread . . .   

 

I had my chicken salad on salad greens . . .  Todd of course did not.  Oh well . . .

 

The star of course was the chicken salad.  I did the Buffalo Chicken version and it was absolutely fabulous. The recipe comes from a magazine on chicken that I bought at the grocery store the last time I was visiting Canada.  Its a lovely basic recipe . . . . 

 

And then of course there are ten different variations . . .  sure to suit every taste!

 

This really was a lot of fun! And it didn't really take a lot of effort on my part.

 

It made a change from the usual Winter bill of fare  . . . 

  

And injected a bit of sunshine and romance into what was simply a cold, blustery, rainy day! 

Yield: 4Author: Marie Rayner

Chicken Salad with variations

With a few flavourful additions and basic ingredients you need never have boring Chicken Salad again.

ingredients:

For the basic salad: (see variations below)

• 1/2 pound cooked chicken, chopped
• 1 stalk of celery, chopped
• 2 thinly sliced spring onions (scallions)
• 1/3 to 1/2 cup good quality mayonnaise
• or salad dressing
• 1 tsp snipped fresh basil
• 1/2 tsp finely grated lemon zest
• 1/4 tsp salt

instructions:

1. Combine the chicken, celery, spring onions in a bowl. Mix together the mayonnaise, basil, lemon zest and salt. Fold dressing into the chicken and vegetables gently, to combine well. Cover and chill for 1 to 4 hours.  Serve on bread, crackers, or salad greens.

Variations:

1. 1. Buffalo Chicken - Omit Basil, stir in 1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese and 1/4 to 1/2 tsp hot pepper sauce.
2. 2. Hawaiian - Stir in 1/2 cup chopped pineapple. Just before serving, stir in 1/4 cup chopped toasted macadamia nuts.
3. 3. Mediterranean - Omit celery. Stir in 1/2 cup chopped marinated artichoke hearts and 1/4 cup crumbled Feta cheese. Top with shredded basil.
4. 4. Grape-Nut - Stir in 3/4 cup chopped seedless grapes. Just before serving, stir in 1/2 cup chopped toasted walnuts.
5. 5. Bacon-Egg-Tomato - Stir in two chopped hard boiled eggs. Just before serving, stir in 1/2 cup chopped cherry tomatoes. Top with crumbled cooked crisp bacon.
6. 6. Spicy Chili - Omit Basil and lemon zest. Stir in 1 to 2 tsp mild chili powder.  Top with toasted pumpkin seeds.
7. 7. Cashew Curry - Stir in 1 to 2 tsp curry powder. Just before serving stir in 2 TBS chopped roasted cashew nuts. You can also add 2 TBS mango chutney with the mayonnaise.
8. 8. Cucumber/Melon - Just before serving, stir in 1/2 cup chopped cucumber and serve on melon wedges.
9. 9. Coriander Lime - Omit basil and lemon zest. Stir in 1 TBS snipped fresh coriander (cilantro) and 1/2 tsp fresh lemon zest.  Top with  toasted sesame seeds and chopped coriander.
10. 10. Apple Pecan -  Stir in 3/4 cup chopped fresh eating apple. Just before serving, stir in 1/3 cup chopped toasted pecan nuts.

Created using The Recipes Generator 

 

Even if you don't want to do something like this for Valentines Day, it would be fun to just do it on any day to help chase away the Winter doldrums's and blues.   

Happy Sunday and Bon Appetit! 

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Dill & Cucumber Chicken Salad

I confess when I was younger I was not all that fond of chicken salad sandwiches. I am not sure why.  It is something which I have taken to mostly in my older life.  There wasn't anything really per se that I didn't like about them, I guess I just always preferred sliced chicken to chicken salad.  To be honest, I hadn't really tried it . . . I just always thought that I wouldn't like them, and so I was hesitant to try.  When I worked at the Manor though, I used to make Chicken Salad for my boss now and then, and in the process I was required to taste it, and I then learned that actually, Chicken Salad was kinda tasty!

 

You can make a chicken salad either to eat on its own on a lettuce leaf, or to be placed between two sliced of bread very easily.  Chicken breast meat is so benign flavourwise and adapts itself well to many textures and flavours. 

 

I think for me the reason I avoided chicken salad for so long, it was a texture thing.  I was never really fond of the feeling of having something soft in my mouth, and mixed with something of resistance . . .  almost like trying to eat the bone in a fish, or a piece of gristle in a hamburger.  I still cannot really eat a lot of things with hamburger in them, but I do enjoy a nice chicken salad every now and then.  I have adapted and my tastes have grown!

  

This chicken salad today is a bit different than the usual one. You won't find any fruit in it all, nor nuts.  In fact almost everything in it is green. You might want to call it GREEN chicken salad, except that name is quite highly un-appealing, so we won't!!  There is plenty of flavour and texture in this salad from the use of chopped spring onions (Scallions), celery, cucumber, pickle, dillweed and the usual mayo, sour cream, some Dijon mustard and some seasoning. 

 

For the pickles I chose Mrs Elswood Whole Sweet Cucumbers.  They are not really sour like gerkins or cornichons would be, but have a lovely sweet pickle flavour, with just a hint of onion and sweet pickling spices.  I thought they would go well with the dillweed.  If I had used dill pickles that would have been too much dill, these whole sweet cucumbers added just the right touch.

 

Todd enjoyed his on a soft roll, as for myself, I wanted to enjoy it on some toasted wholewheat bread.  Kind of like you might get at a Diner Counter.

 

This sandwich kind of reminded me of my younger days when I was first working away from home.  I was boarding with a little old lady who gave me a packed lunch to take to work every day, but on paydays I used to treat myself to a nice lunch out at the Metropolitan Department store which was around the corner from the office I worked in.

 

Some days it would be our family favourite Fish and Chips, always disappointing because it was only the frozen fish wedges, not hand dipped fillets . . .  more often than not, I would opt for a Club Sandwich  or a BLT on toasted whole wheat bread.

 

If they had offered a sandwich like this . . .  with a delicious chicken salad, and a healthy layer of salad greens on toasted whole wheat bread, I might have been tempted to try out chicken salad sooner!  This was IS a very good sandwich.  I am going to try this again!  It made a great change from having chicken salad with cranberries or pecans.  This was very nice.

 

*Dill & Cucumber Chicken Salad*

Makes 8 servings

Printable Recipe 

A delicious chicken salad that is a bit out of the ordinary.  Filled with lots of flavour and crunch. 

375g cooked chicken, cubed (3 cups)

40g sour cream (1/3 cup)

65g mayonnaise (1/3 cup)

1 TBS Dijon mustard

4 spring onions, trimmed and chopped

6 inches of an English cucumber, peeled, deseeded and chopped (abput 1/2 cup)

2 sticks celery, trimmed and chopped

2 pickles, chopped

2 tsp fresh dill leaves

1 tsp fine sea salt

freshly ground black pepper to taste

 

Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl, stirring until completely combined.  Taste and adjust seasoning as required.  Use as desired. Its lovely served as a salad, scooped onto lettuce leaves, or in a sandwich with another pickle on the side.  I like mine on toasted whole wheat bread with a healthy layer of salad leaves.  Store any leftovers, covered, in the refrigerator.

 

With Picnic season coming up, these would also make great sandwiches to take along with you in the picnic basket on some of your outings.  Todd and I love to gad about in the warmer months going here and there, but we don't always want to have to resort to buying a meal when we are out.  I normally will make us a picnic lunch to take along. There is nothing like sitting on a blanket up at the Horseshoe Pass and enjoying a nice sandwich while you take in the beauty of God's splendor! 

 

Whether it’s the healthy addition to your cheeseboard, for adding a tasty crunch to your sandwich or the secret ingredient in your salmon terrine, pickles are bigger than ever (The London Evening Standard flagged them as an upcoming trend), which is why Mrs Elswood, the number 1 pickled cucumber brand in the UK is excited to announce their return as a sponsor of National Picnic Week (15-24 June 2018).


Now in its 13th year National Picnic Week is dedicated to everything great about the British summer – getting outdoors (weather permitting), enjoying tasty food & drink, and spending time with family & friends. Activity planned for National Picnic Week include competitions for the best picnic spots in the UK, recipes for delicious alfresco dishes to prepare at home and general advice on picnicking.


In preparation for National Picnic Week, the team at Mrs Elswood will once again be coming up with some easy, outdoor recipes to impress your friends on your jaunt to the park.


Produced at the height of the cucumber growing season during June & July every year and packed straight away for freshness and full flavour, Mrs Elswood is ideal in a quiche, a welcome addition to a ham sandwich or fabulous on their own. A household name for over 70 years, Mrs Elswood is the must-have picnic basket essential.

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