In the springtime, we start to think about going on picnics with our loved ones. Just getting out in the fresh air after a winter cooped up indoors seems to refresh our minds, bodies, and spirits.
For a special celebration, take Mom on a picnic for Mother's day! Spread a blanket on the ground under a tree. Lay out napkins, plates, and a vase with some freshly picked flowers, and perhaps a radio playing softly in the background. Mom would really appreciate all the effort you have gone to, and is a really easy and fun idea for kids to help with. If it's raining, move your picnic indoors into the living room!
Picnic sandwiches can range anywhere from meat subs to tuna salad sandwiches. Egg salad is another fun and easy to make sandwich. Croissants make a great base for a special sandwich, just cut them in half and then you can make any kind of sandwich with them.
Terrific Tuna Salad
- 1 can tuna, drained
- 1 tablespoon mayonnaise
- 1 teaspoon mustard
- 1 hard-boiled egg
- 1/4 cup chopped celery
- 1/4 cup chopped onion
Drain the tuna and put it in a bowl. Add the mayonnaise, mustard, egg chopped up, celery and onion. Mix everything together and serve on your choice of bread.
- Yields: about 1 cup
- Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Egg Salad Extravaganza
- 3 hard-boiled eggs
- 1 tablespoon mayonnaise
- 1 teaspoon mustard
- 1 teaspoon sugar
Chop up the hard-boiled eggs until they are of the desired size. Mix together the eggs, mustard, mayonnaise, and sugar. If it's not sweet enough, you can add more sugar. Spread on the bread of your choice.
- Yields: about 1 cup
- Preparation Time: 10 minutes
Potato salad can be made ahead of time and kept in a sealed container in the refrigerator. Be sure to keep it on ice for your picnic -- you don't want the mayonnaise spoiling and ruining your picnic! Macaroni salad also works well for picnics. Pea salad is our favorite picnic salad. You can take peas straight from the can (drained), or frozen (thawed), or fresh (shelled). You might want to wait until you serve the salad to mix in the cheese. Diced tomatoes and bacon bits also go well with this salad.
Pea Salad
- 1 can peas (drained) or 1 package frozen peas (thawed) or 2 cups fresh peas (shelled), boiled
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 1/2 cup chopped celery
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1 cup grated cheese
- 1 cup walnuts (optional)
Mix together all of the ingredients in a bowl. Reserve some of the cheese for topping. This salad is best served ice cold after having set over night.
- Yields: 4-6 servings
- Preparation Time: 10 minutes, plus chilling time
For dessert, a frozen fruit mix is always nice. They have those in the freezer section of most grocery stores. They usually contain grapes, melon, strawberries, and various other fruits. Thaw the mix and serve it with a little bit of whipped cream for a healthy and tasty dish. You could also mix it with a peach pie filling for a little added zest.
Enjoy your picnic!