It’s now the perfect time for outdoor activities in Doha. Everyone wants to spend as much time as possible and take advantage of the weather especially it won’t be for so long.
I heart picnics! what’s better than throwing a fun picnic with the family and friends, enjoying good homemade food while surrounded by nature. The best thing, we didn’t have to go far to enjoy our picnic, 10 minutes drive and here we are in the beautiful museum park. It was full of people picnicking, but the space was so big that everyone got his private green spot.
I know lot of you find it hard to prepare food for picnic and prefer to buy them ready packed to save the hassle. I will give you great food ideas, so easy and pretty that will make you think twice before having take away.
The aim of this post is not giving detailed recipes but ideas of practical food for picnic and how a small detail makes it look fancy and creative. Yes why not, you can have a casual picnic with beautifully presented food that looks fancy.
1- Grilled Chicken and avocado sandwiches. Very easy to prepare. You can use any type of bread, personally i like beignet bread for its soft texture. Stuff it with the grilled chicken, avocado slices, iceberg lettuce and mayonnaise. You can use any stuffing you like, wrap the sandwich with craft paper and tie it with a twine.
Eh voila the pretty and creative sandwiches yet practical. Now it’s easy to put them in a container or even a zip lock bag.
2- Spinach and Emmental quiche. Any type of flat food prepared in a baking dish and cut in geometric shapes is very easy to be stored, if you don’t like quiche you can have pizza, kibbeh bil sanyeh, tarte….
The best part of lunch is when everyone shares his food. If you are a group of people, no one has too much to prepare, distribute the tasks! This quiche was prepared by my friend Hajar. It was delicious!
3- Pasta, crab and orange salad. Salads are always a hit in picnics. Great as a side or main dish if it has substantial ingredients. Easy to pack in a container and stays fresh up to 4 hours without a fridge.
Salads are colorful and cheerful. Long tubular pasta (casarecce), matching the shape of the crab sticks, orange wedges and corn. Yellow, orange and red go really well with the green backdrop. Serve it with lemon mayo dressing to go with the tangy flavor. There are open ended choices of salads. I am sure everyone has his favorite.
4- Hotdog puff pastry and cheese straws. Very easy and quick especially the puff pastry is ready made. It only takes the time of baking (15 mns almost). You can replace the hotdog with cheese or spinach.
Cutting boards are very practical and beautiful to serve the food. Jamie oliver was a big inspiration in this matter. In previous posts i showed you how to decorate your cutting boards for such presentations.
5- Marbled cake. There should always be at least one dessert to please your sweet tooth especially if you have kids with you. A basic but delicious cake is one option.
It’s so clever to bake them in individual molds for picnic. No need for plates and forks, each can have his part with no mess! One day I will share the detailed recipe (it is Cyril Lignac’s recipe) for this cake because it’s so yummy. Again thank you Hajar for introducing this cake to us.
6- Custard and jello in a jar. This was a fab idea for this type of dessert. You can use any mason jar you have at home, close the lid and here is the most practical dessert ever. It can be any pudding you like.
It was a fun day, we really enjoyed the weather and the green space. It was a great opportunity to play with the kids and unwind after a long busy week.
It’s the most wonderful time of the year, the time when you most receive and offer gifts. Personally, i love homemade gifts, adding your personal touch and thoughts, turns any simple gesture to a gift of love. At the end this is what Christmas is all about, no?!
Let your presents this year be expressive, offer JOY, PEACE, LOVE, HOPE… homemade shortbread cookies to your loved ones. Remember my motto?! (Mother teresa quote) we don’t do big things, we do small things with big love!
This year I am offering joy to my loved ones. Wishing you all the happiness in the world, and may the birth of Jesus flourishes joy in your hearts!
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