PICNICS

Who would argue that one of the best picnic scenes ever, is in the movie “Armeggedon” with Ben Affleck and Liv Tyler?  The most romantic march of animal crackers I’ve ever seen!  Or in “Pretty Woman” when Julia Roberts takes time to teach Richard Gere the basics in good picnic’ing.  First; remove your shoes.  And finally, for those of you old enough to remember, Yogi and Boo-Boo, the Black Belt Masters in rounding up pic-a-nic baskets throughout “Jellystone Park.”  Hidden from the Park Ranger, Yogi would gleefully imbibe on the treasures within while Boo-Boo wrung his paws in worry.   

     Yesterday I was able to enjoy a fabulous late afternoon picnic with friends at Spring Mountain Ranch.  Just a few miles from my home, where the July temperatures take a reprieve from the red zone of the thermometer,  we gathered together to share food, wine and the musical “A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum” under the evening stars.  A dear friend purchased my ticket so in keeping with my favored way of thanking people I claimed dibs on preparing the food.  My friend eats vegetarian and has one of the most well developed palates I know.  I have one other friend like Cheryl, who can discern the subtleties of lesser-known seasonings, spices and herbs.  These two women spur me on to create intrigue and mystery into my food, while maintaining good flavor without going too far.  Often times in our efforts to fashion a unique and different dish, we cooks can take things to the extreme using myriad of ingredients, resulting in a mish-mash of taste.  No, my goal was to assemble a picnic basket tantamount to my gratitude.  One even Yogi would find so numinous he’d invite Mr. Ranger over to share and taste. 

     I decided to craft a combination of sweet, savory and spicy.  Out of respect in our attempts to eat somewhat healthy I gathered a collection of hearty vegetables; carrots, radishes, celery and yellow bell pepper.  Displaying them in one of my flower pots I use only for food, would entice even those with aversions to platters of crudités.  Of course I needed something to scoop them into.  Hummus is pretty common these days, so to make mine a little less so, I prepared a cannellini and rosemary version.  Lots of garlic, sesame seed oil and a good squeeze of fresh lemon juice, this made for a bright and clean taste.  Sandwiches are also mainstays on most picnic blankets.  Though I prefer them warm they travel well and can be equally tasty at room temperature,  I decided on Panini, (Italian for “small sandwich).  Ordinarily I would use layers of thinly sliced ham, but for these I used a vegetarian chicken substitute, which worked very well.  I placed the rounds of “chick-n” between two slices of lightly buttered sourdough bread.  Topped it with slices of Brie then added dollops of my apricot and mustard spread.  A handful of arugula and into the Panini press it went.  I have to tell you, hot from the press, these piccolo panino were the bomb!  The melty Brie cheese oozed over my tongue followed by the intermingling of apricot and mustard.  Really quite amazing if I do say so myself.  The addition of the spicy and peppery arugula offset the sweetness of the jam perfectly. 

     We had already finished off the first bottle of white wine while snacking on our appetizer and had moved on to a nice pinot which we savored until just before the show started.  Then, as dusk settled over our exposed toes and the mountains behind us took on an indigo hue, I pulled out dessert.  Not known for my kinship with baking I wanted to keep this simple to prepare and easy to eat.  It was with pride I presented to my cohorts, miniature turnovers.  I purchased commercial pie pastry, rolled it out and cut sixteen 3” rounds.  In the center of eight rounds, I placed a spoonful of peach pie filling mixed with cinnamon and pecan bits.  I then put the remaining eight rounds on top of each and using a fork pinched the edges closed.  A light brushing of egg and water with a sprinkling of sugar then into the oven for about 15 – 20 minutes.  I prepared a “dipping sauce” of vanilla crème anglaise to veil any evidence of my ineptitude for baking.   These were really good. 

    It seemed our hike around the ranch followed by a gratifying picnic erased the typical residual of too much wine.   So for the remainder of the evening we sipped water, fingered a few more bites here and there of what food was left and yes, there was tiny bit more of the grape poured into our glasses.  I love picnics. 

Some unexpected friends we met who came to enjoy the show.  Obviously they also know how to throw a good picnic.