A Good Dish

making food simpler

Labor Day Picnic Ideas

detail of picnic scene by Milton Avery in the Avery show on exhibit now at the Bennington Museum
detail of picnic scene by Milton Avery
in the Avery show on exhibit now at the Bennington Museum

A Labor Day picnic is a way to use up the contents of your produce drawer and have a lovely late summer meal outdoors. Whether you box it all up to transport to a park or beach or plate it to serve in your yard, a picnic is a fun, easy and festive way to eat on a day when we take off from our ordinary labor. Picnics often involve less complicated foods and certainly less dishes to do! When our son was young, we would picnic at a nearby playground with other families on warm summer nights. The kids could run around and we got a break from the kitchen and time to chat with other parents. Now we are more likely to take a picnic when we go to hear music outdoors and almost always when taking the train or flying somewhere.

Picnic food has certain requirements – no mayo (or other ingredients that go bad from sitting out for a while), ease of eating (often to be picked up in the hands or off paper plates) and easily transported. I usually think of Italian antipasto when composing a picnic – if food can sit out on a buffet table for hours, it will probably be fine in a cooler or picnic basket. I try, whenever possible, not to use plastic containers so for picnicking or lunch boxes, I use glass or stainless steel boxes. I know everyone is not so persnickety. Even deli sandwiches or containers of salad bar takeout provide the makings for an improvised picnic.

Tomato and cucumber salad with pesto vinaigrette
Tomato and cucumber salad with pesto vinaigrette

All kinds of simple foods work on a picnic – cheeses, salami or other dried sausages, olives, nuts, sandwiches without mayonnaise, rice, pasta, and bean salads with oil based dressings, whole, sliced or cut up fruit (peaches, figs and watermelon are perfect right now), cleaned and cut raw vegetables like carrots, celery, peppers, jicama, cucumbers and cherry tomatoes). With just a bit more effort you can include cooked vegetable salads (like broccoli, cauliflower, roasted peppers, corn or summer squash) with vinaigrette and even cooked chicken, ham or bacon, smoked or cold, poached fish, canned tuna or salmon prepared with oil or mustard and even a frittata can hold up to jostling and temperature fluctuations if you are careful about sauces and timing and carry some cold packs.

My favorite picnic food is pesto. It’s great on pasta, beans, rice, baked or fried tempeh and tofu, chicken, fish or lightly cooked vegetables and doesn’t spoil easily. The traditional basil is my fallback but there are terrific versions made with arugula, kale, parsley and even Swiss chard. You can make it with or without cheese and even without nuts, black pepper or garlic, if you can’t eat or don’t like them. Just make sure to wash and dry your greens before blending and add plenty of fresh olive oil and salt which help preserve the greens. I use a food processor but you could make this with a mortar and pestle or in a strong blender.

Rice pasta salad with pesto and arugula Bowl by Silvie Granatelli
Rice pasta salad with pesto and arugula
Bowl by Silvie Granatelli

So head out to a park or the beach, hiking or boating, your deck, porch or yard while the weather is mild and bring a meal with you – it’s easy to prepare ahead and you won’t spend your day off concerned with meal planning. If, by chance it rains, spread your tablecloth or blanket on the floor and invent a pretend outing. I once planned a birthday picnic in Riverside park but when it rained, everyone just brought their fixings to our apartment and we had a wonderful indoor celebration.  You can picnic anywhere. Don’t forget lots of water and lemonade, beer, wine and/or a thermos of your favorite concoction to add to the festive feeling. Happy outings!

Indoor potluck picnic at a friend's apartment
Indoor potluck picnic at a friend’s apartment

 

PRETTY TRADITIONAL BUT DELICIOUS BASIL PESTO

  •  1-2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/2 cup walnuts, toasted or raw
  • 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese, optional
  • Pinch of salt and pinch of black pepper
  • 2-3 cups washed and dried fresh basil leaves
  • Handful of washed and dried parsley or watercress or arugula, optional
  • 4 TBS extra virgin olive oil, or more to reach desired consistency 

Put garlic in processor and pulse until finely ground. Add basil and any other green, if using, salt and pepper and process until all well mixed and leaves are all ground. Add nuts and cheese, if using, and pulse until ground and combined. Stop and scrape down sides. Stream in the oil while the motor is running. Stop and scrape down sides and see if it needs more seasoning or oil to reach a smooth consistency.

 Use right away, thinned with a little (a couple of TBs) cooking water from pasta, rice or vegetables, to toss with pasta, rice, vegetables, cut up chicken or cooked beans (cannellini or great northern work well but so do many other types). Grate in a little lemon zest or squeeze in a little lemon juice for a fresh taste or add a pinch of cayenne or crushed chilies for heat. If using the salad for a picnic, cool in the refrigerator for a few hours or overnight. Pesto keeps well in the fridge for weeks with a thin coating of oil on top or in the freezer for months.

Clean basil ready to be turned into pesto
Clean basil ready to be turned into pesto

 PESTO VINAIGRETTE

 Shake or whisk until well blended:

  • 2 TBs pesto
  • 1 TBs wine or balsamic vinegar

Hummus on a hot day – the Mezze solution

Smoked paprika, roasted red pepper, cilantro & jalapeño and sesame hummus Porcelain bowls from Sara Japanese Pottery on Lexington Avenue
Smoked paprika, roasted red pepper, cilantro & jalapeño and sesame hummus
Porcelain bowls from Sara Japanese Pottery on Lexington Avenue

I am not going to turn on the oven or the stove – just not going to do it. With another week of over 90F and humid, with the heat index over 100, I am not going to add to the temperature in the kitchen. But we still need to eat, so I have to prepare meals without straining the groaning AC any more than I am already. And in this kind of weather, we all prefer a lighter meal.

In my mind, summer dinners should be fun, cooling and a bit hodgepodge. If you don’t have access to a grill, salads are a way to go. A few weeks ago, I shared the cucumber and pineapple salad with lime and mint that is fresh and zingy. And the tomato salads and variations (the caprese with mozzarella, the tomato and cuke with basil, the watermelon with feta, mint and lime) are another solution. Cold soup is one more direction, essentially being a liquid salad. Gazpacho, cold cucumber soup with yogurt or buttermilk or a fruit soup, like blueberry or melon are all light, cooling lunches or suppers. Or simply put out a cheese or charcuterie board with some fig jam or pepper jelly, nuts, cold grapes or sliced fruit and a green salad and be done.

One more idea, and one you probably already have in your fridge, is hummus. Boring, you are thinking? Doesn’t have to be. And doesn’t have to be served with pita or chips – carrots, celery, green and red pepper, cucumber, jicama and radishes all make excellent dipping vehicles and, when well arranged, make a lovely mezze platter. You can even start with store bought hummus and doctor it up, although homemade takes so very little time and effort it is really worth it – plus you know what is in it! Blend in avocado, pieces of black or green olives, jalapeños, roasted peppers, cooked beets or carrots, toasted walnuts, chopped chives, parsley or dill or, my favorite, smoked paprika. Pretty much anything goes. Lighten it all up by mixing in some plain yogurt or enrich it by drizzling with plain or chili infused olive oil. If you don’t eat legumes, make the recipe without the chickpeas only add a little less water and use it as a tahini dip.

The best hummus I ever ate was at Zahav, Michael Solomonov’s restaurant in Philadelphia. It was creamy, lemony and altogether full of sesame flavor. The recipe I have provided below is based on his, with a few modifications. If it were a cold weather month, I would cook my own chickpeas but with this heat, I am happy to use canned. Solomonov recommends Soom Tahini (sold on Amazon) but I’ve used a local brand (Sahadi from Brooklyn), Trader Joe’s (which happens to be organic) and several health food brands (all in glass, not a tin) with good results. Err on the side of more garlic, salt and lemon rather than too little and blend it all longer than you would think for super creaminess.

Plate your hummus in a beautiful shallow bowl (easier for dipping), drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with paprika or sesame seeds and surround it generously with all kinds of colorful vegetables on a large platter or wooden board. To make a mezze platter, serve it with or without some stuffed grape leaves (as easy as opening a can), small bowls of olives, cherry tomatoes, those yummy peppadew or cherry peppers, sliced melon, tabbouleh or a parsley salad and an accompanying bread – focaccia, ciabatta, baguette or pita, or your favorite gluten-free crackers (try the Mary’s pretzel-like sticks with the hummus – very crunchy) – add a cold beer or glass of wine and dinner is served.

Mezze platter, heavy on the vegetables My bowls and platter
Mezze platter, heavy on the vegetables
My bowls and platter

Homemade Hummus

1 can (15.5 oz.) organic chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup tahini
2-3 garlic cloves
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1 heaping teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 cup water or more, as needed

Combine garlic, salt and cumin and pulse until minced well.
Add lemon juice and pulse, then add tahini and pulse until it seizes up.
Add water, more if needed, and blend until smooth.
Add chickpeas and pulse until completely smooth.
Taste for seasoning and add more salt if you think it needs it – probably will.
Hummus keeps well for days in the refrigerator.

Optional add-ins:
1 tsp smoked paprika
1/4 cup toasted sesame seeds (reserve 1 tsp for sprinkling on top)
1-2 roasted red peppers (I use jarred)
2 green jalapeños and a big handful of cilantro with juice of 1/2 lime
1 roasted beet
1-2 TBs olive oil
1/2-1 cup plain yogurt
1/2-1 peeled and pitted avocado
1/2 cup black or green pitted olives
A handful of parsley and chives
1/2 cup sautéed onions or several cloves of roasted garlic
If you take out half of the hummus before putting in an add-in, you can make 2 flavors out of one recipe.
Whatever else you can imagine – hummus is a good vehicle for adding your favorite ingredient

Caprese Salad – many variations on a theme

Ripe farmer's market tomatoes
Ripe farmer’s market tomatoes

A composed Caprese salad is the classic no-cook summer meal. It just involves some slicing and drizzling and it is ready to eat. The traditional Caprese is sliced tomatoes and mozzarella with fresh basil leaves topped with olive oil, sometimes balsamic or red wine vinegar, salt and pepper. A summer lunch or dinner doesn’t get much simpler.

Caprese hors d'oeuvre with cherry tomatoes and bocconcini Plate by Simon Levin
Caprese hors d’oeuvre with cherry tomatoes and bocconcini
Plate by Simon Levin
Bush basil (left) and Genovese basil (right)
Bush basil (left) and Genovese basil (right)

But there are many variations on the classic. You can substitute peaches, nectarines or an orange fleshed melon – like cantaloupe or musk – for the tomatoes or use cherry tomatoes and bocconcini (the little mozzarella balls you eat in one bite) on a skewer with a basil leaf – the perfect summer hors d’oeuvre. Or cut tomatoes and mozzarella in chunks and toss with torn basil leaves and vinaigrette.

If you want a heavier meal, you could add pasta, quinoa or fresh corn and some extra vinaigrette. If you don’t eat cheese, just leave out the mozzarella or add avocado – it is satisfying and substantial and you will get a similar flavor from the fresh basil, olive oil and vinegar. If you have bush basil (the tiny leaf variety), you can use it in place of the traditional Genovese basil. Just sprinkle it over the whole salad instead of using the usual whole leaves. Fresh oregano or arugula can substitute for basil, if you like them better, or add a bit of oregano to the dressing for complexity. (In winter, you might use oil-soaked dried tomatoes and dried basil and oregano for an out-of-season version). A cousin of the caprese is the watermelon/feta salad – a little lime or lemon juice, olive oil, red onion and mint – an easy no-cook and refreshing meal.

Peaches, mozzarella and fresh basil leaves
Peaches, mozzarella and fresh basil leaves

How you design your salad is up to you. Once you have chosen your fruit (tomato, peach, etc.), the fun is in laying out the overlapping slices in a pleasing pattern, straight, circular or otherwise, and punctuating with the fresh basil. The whole thing may be layered directly on a plate or platter or on a bed or lettuce or arugula, for extra greens. Then drizzle with a good, preferably aged, balsamic vinegar and extra-virgin olive oil, sprinkle with sea salt and black pepper and you are ready to eat.

Traditional Caprese Salad Plate by Bandana Pottery - Michael Hunt and Naomi Dalglish
Traditional Caprese Salad
Plate by Bandana Pottery – Michael Hunt and Naomi Dalglish

Fresh mozzarella is available widely now. Even Costco sells a tasty variety made with milk untreated with hormones. Or try a simpler version without cheese – the solo tomato/basil combination is a pretty good runner up, especially when seasonal tomatoes are as delicious as they are just starting to be. Just tomatoes and cucumbers (you could also add green and/or red peppers) are delicious with fresh basil and balsamic and olive oil. Any leftovers, if there are any, can go right into tomorrow’s gazpacho. If you are a bread eater, make sure to have a crusty loaf handy to mop up all of the flavorful juices!

Cold Salmon Salad with Dill

Salmon Salad plates by Andrew Martin
Salmon Salad
plates by Andrew Martin

Canned salmon may not be in your pantry but it has become a staple in mine. A few weeks ago, I wrote about cooked salmon cakes made with canned salmon. Since this is a series on no-cook dishes, I am offering an easier, quicker and much cooler preparation –  a salmon salad. It is a terrific substitute for tuna salad since it doesn’t have a high mercury content, is made with mustard, not mayo, so it picnics well and makes a substantial sandwich filling.

The benefits of wild salmon are many – high in omega-3’s, lean protein, good tasting and well-sourced. The ease of having it on your shelf in a can means you aren’t limited to a season plus it is much more economical – from about $4 – $6 per 14.75 oz can. (If price were no issue, you could make this salad with leftover cooked fresh salmon and it would be delicious in a different way). Tinned wild salmon comes with bones, which are high in calcium, and just mash up into the salmon so you don’t even notice them. I discard the skin since I don’t like the texture (it only takes a moment to scrape it off). Plus, I read recently that the skin is where most chemical residue resides so I prefer not to ingest it. 

This recipe is quick and can stay in the refrigerator for a day or so. I like to add lots of celery, scallions and chopped celery leaves but you may prefer green peppers, red onion and parsley. I add a little chopped sweet pickles and some pickle juice if I am in the mood for something sweeter but I always add plenty of dill – fresh, if I have it, or dried, if I don’t. If you hate dill, use a different herb, like tarragon or basil, for example. If you don’t like mustard, you could use plain yogurt or mayonnaise. Or use a flavored mustard with herbs or horseradish. You could add finely diced carrots, jicama, jalapeño or cucumber for crunch. If I were making this for company, I would add a couple of chopped hard-boiled eggs and a big handful of chopped almonds. It is pretty served on a bed of greens with whole grain crackers or carrot, celery and pepper strips. We sometimes pile it on Wasa or Finn Crisp crackers and eat it like an open face sandwich. It is fun to embellish with thin cucumber slices, grated carrots, sunflower sprouts or whatever you like – an easy, cold meal on a hot day.

COLD SALMON SALAD

Mix together:

  • 1 14.75 oz can wild salmon, rinsed, drained, skin removed and mashed with a fork
  • 2-3 stalks celery, with leaves if you like them, chopped finely
  • 3 scallions, chopped finely
  • 1/2 cup fresh dill, chopped or 1-1 1/2 TBs dried dill weed – or more if you like it
  • 3 TBs Dijon mustard
  • 1 TBs fresh lemon juice (or pickle juice, if you like)
  • 1/4 tsp sea salt
  • 1 tsp ground black pepper
  • 5-6 slices sweet pickles or 3-4 gherkins, chopped finely (optional)
  • 2 medium to hard-boiled eggs, chopped or mashed with a fork (optional)
  • 1/2 cup raw, roasted or Marcona almonds, chopped (optional)

Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Feeds 4 people with a green salad or 2 with enough leftover for 2 sandwiches.

Salmon Salad Sandwich with grated carrots, lettuce and cucumber on whole grain bread
Salmon Salad Sandwich with grated carrots, lettuce and cucumber on whole grain bread

No Cook Meals for Hot Summer Days

Cool summer salad Bowl by Scott Chamberlin
Cool summer salad
Bowl by Scott Chamberlin

Now that it is summer and it’s hot, the last thing you want to do is prepare a cooked meal that will heat up your kitchen. Over the next few weeks, while temperatures are high, I will post some suggestions for cold, easy to assemble recipes that don’t require turning on your oven or stove at all. The first is a simple, refreshing salad. It has only a handful of ingredients but is surprisingly tasty and cooling, just what you want on a hot summer day. It travels well for lunch or a picnic and is easily multiplied for a large group.

Cucumber and Pineapple Salad

  • 1/2 pineapple, peeled, cored and diced, with any juice that collects when you cut it
  • 4 Kirby cucumbers, sliced (1 hothouse or 2 regular cukes would work)
  • Large handful of fresh mint leaves, chopped
  • 1/4 cup of fresh lime juice
  • Pinch salt

Toss all ingredients together and refrigerate until cold. If leaving in the refrigerator overnight, don’t add the mint until about an hour before plating, if you don’t want it wilted. Serves 4 people.

If you want to add some protein, chopped leftover chicken, ham, roast pork, fried tofu, Marcona almonds or cooked shrimp would make a complete dinner salad, nicely served in lettuce leaves or with tortilla chips or crackers. Sprinkle with a couple of chopped scallion or some diced red onion and a sprinkle of cayenne to zest it all up.

Cool summer salad Bowl by Scott Chamberlin
Cool summer salad
Bowl by Scott Chamberlin