Who doesn’t love a picnic in the park?
I have the most beautiful childhood memories of family picnics on the beach and in the forest in Portugal.
When I moved to London back in 2011, I was introduced to an all new ‘picnic reality’: picnics in the park with a thoughtful selection of foods and gadgets.
In Portugal, even in a picnic, we don’t ‘picnic’ per se, we continue to eat – meaning that we still cook a big meal and treat a picnic like a sit-down lunch or dinner. Even though we also have our favourite picnic foods you may see rice, peri-peri chicken and mixed salad on a portuguese picnic blanket.
After almost 11 years of living in London, my favourite picnic foods are no longer inspired by my Portuguese heritage, but by a very British and melting pot blend of other nationalities.
However, picnics are often associated with out of ordinary eating and drinking with a good dose of indulgence, I still like to eat in a balanced and nutritious way, choosing fresh and homemade foods as possible.
Food you will find on my picnic blanket
On my picnic blanket you will see the following 5 foods that won’t compromise your regular daily eating habits, health and wallet:
- Crudités – traditional french appetisers consisting of sliced or whole raw vegetables (e.g. celery sticks, baby carrots, radish)
- Watermelon, berries & raspberries for an antioxidant, fibre and essential vitamins boost
- Hummus – the perfect dip for your crudités!
- Frittata – serve it sliced with a side of crudités and a heaped spoon of hummus
- Olives – from green to black, from Kalamata to Niçoise, olives are packed with good fats, vitamin E and antioxidants
You will also see:
- Artisan scotch eggs and sausage rolls – British tradition on your picnic blanket: make your own or find them in your local artisan bakeries
- Falafel – divine bites of Middle Eastern flavours dipped in hummus.
- Ice-cream/gelato – for me no picnic is complete without an ice cream!
- Crisps – crisps are a traditional picnic staple. I have never been a big fan of crisps: I naturally prefer a good dose of grains, legumes and vegetables in crisps, you can choose from lentils, quinoa, chickpea, kale or beetroot crisps
What about you, what is on your picnic blanket?
Leave your comment below.
Enjoy your picnics, enjoy the summer!
