5 No Fail Picnic Recipe Ideas + Free Printables

5 No Fail Picnic Recipe Ideas + Free Printables

An at-home Picnic is a perfect way to spend a date night or family night with the kids to add a bit of fun and something different to the routine. 
 
If you want to check out some other date night ideas or picnic settings to prepare check out my blog post "10 Unique At-Home Date Night Ideas that are sure to be Magic" for more details.
 
For some great (and easy) recipe ideas that you can prepare for the picnic check out the below:

1.  Pita's, Bread & Dips  

Buy some pita bread and fresh baguettes from the grocery store and local bakery and warm them in the oven at about 150 degree Celsius about 10 minutes before your picnic starts, so they are warm, crispy and delicious for your picnic start.
 
Prepare in advance some dips to for the breads, you can always buy pre-made at the store or make them yourself (plus this option is healthy) try out these two below.
 
My take on a Greek yogurt dip:
 
Ingredients:

• 1 large container of Greek Yogurt
• 2 medium sized garlic cloves (minced)
• Juice of half of a lemon along with the grated lemon peel from the lemon
• 1 cucumber, grated with the water squeezed out of it
• Greek seasoning mix or add make your own to taste (dill, basil, oregano) about 1 tbsp
• Salt and pepper to taste.

 
Directions:
 
Mix all ingredients together (let sit in the fridge for an hour or two or overnight for best results to let the flavors develop)
 
You will get a light, fresh and tasty dip that everyone will love.
 
Hummus:

• Check out my Blog post HERE for a video with a great, quick and easy Hummus recipe that you can easily make at home.

 
2.  Fruit Salad  

You can't have a picnic without fruit.  Make a fruit salad using whatever is your favorite fruit that is in season.  Here's my favorite fruit salad mix:
 
Ingredients:

• Cantaloupe (cut into bite sized pieces) or any other melon that is your favorite (watermelon, honeydew, etc)
• Red grapes (washed)
• Strawberries (washed and cut into bite sized pieces)
• A Pint of Blueberries (washed)
• A Pint of Raspberries (washed)

 
Directions:
 
Mix them all together in a bowl.  It's colorful, beautiful crisp, juicy, tasty and of course healthy. It is wonderful on its own, or, if you want to add a little more of a treat and some sweetness try this:

Ingredients:
 
Easy Sweet & Healthy Yogurt sauce:

• 1 cup of Greek yogurt
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1 tsp vanilla

 
Directions:
 
Mix all the ingredients together.
 
You can either mix it in with the fruit as a sauce or keep it on the side as a dip for the fruit.
 
3.  Cheese & Crackers  

This is probably the easiest of them all.  Just choose a selection of your favorite crackers and cheese, cut the cheese into cracker sized pieces and arrange on a plate.
 
If you want some inspiration check out my Pinterest board for Picnics HERE for some plating looks and variations. 
 
4.   Sandwich selection  

Make up a few different types of your favorite sandwiches and cut them into quarters and arrange them on a plate to be shared.
 
Here are a couple of sandwich ideas that you can use that are our household favorites:
 
My version of a BLT:
 
Ingredients:

• 2 pieces of bread (per sandwich or 1 portion, make as many as you need for your picnic)
• 3 slices of bacon - cooked to crispy with fat drained (per sandwich)
• 1 cheddar cheese slice
• Tomatoes, thinly sliced into rounds
• Butter
• Mayonnaise
• Salt and pepper

 
Directions:
 
Once all of the ingredients are prepped, toast the bread in the toaster and butter the bottom piece once toasted.  Layer it with the cheese slice, followed by the tomatoes, arranged to cover the toast surface, salt and pepper the tomatoes to taste.  Add the bacon slices on top of the tomatoes, add the mayo to the top piece of bread and place on top of the bacon.  Cut into quarters and enjoy. 
 
This is a family favorite at my house!
 
Egg salad sandwich:
 
Ingredients:

• 1 hardboiled egg de-shelled (1 egg per sandwich needed - adjust as necessary)
• 2 slices of bread
• 1 tsp mustard of your choice
• 1 small dill pickle chopped into tiny pieces and tsp of pickle juice from the jar
• 2 tbsp of mayonnaise
• 2 tbsp plain Greek yogurt
• Butter for the bread
• Salt and pepper to taste

 
Directions:
 
Mash up the egg into small pieces with a fork and add salt and pepper to taste.  Add in the chopped pickle, the pickle juice, mustard, mayo and yogurt and mix together.  If too watery add more egg. Butter both sides of the bread, top with the egg salad mixture, cut into quarters and enjoy.
 
Ham & Cheese Sandwich:
 
Ingredients:

• Shredded ham of your choice (approx 50-100 grams per sandwich - adjust as necessary to suit your needs)
• 2 slices of bread
• Mustard
• Butter
• Mayonnaise
• Cheddar cheese slice
• Salt and pepper to taste
• A couple large pieces of iceberg lettuce (washed and patted dry)

 
Directions:
 
Butter the bottom piece of bread and add spread some mustard to your taste.  Layer on the cheese slice followed by the ham.  Salt and pepper the ham to your taste and then layer with the lettuce.  Add the mayo to the top slice of the bread and add to the top of the lettuce.  Cut into quarters and enjoy.
 

1. Dessert - Ice Cream

 
What better way to end off a picnic then with ice cream!  Choose your favorite(s) flavor, buy your favorite kind of ice cream cones and for fun buy some additional toppings (Sprinkles, chocolate, strawberry or butterscotch sauce, cookie crumbles, etc)
 
Scoop up, let the others top as desired and enjoy.  Make sure to bring lots of napkins!
 
 
Bonus*   Drinks.
 
You will also want to have a couple of  options available for drinks to wash down all the food at your picnic.  Here are a couple of easy drink ideas you can use:
 
Fresh, lemon/lime, mint water:
 
Ingredients:

• Juice of a lime or lemon
• Ice cold water (still or sparkling to your preference)
• Handful of mint leaves
• Ice

 
Directions:
 
In a large bottle or pitcher add the mint leaves (twist them a little in your hands first to release the minty flavor) the ice, the water of your choice and then the lemon or lime juice and mix all together.
 
This is crisp and refreshing.
 
For a different flavor you can do the same as the above but instead of the mint add some frozen berries.
 
For adults try:
 
Picnic mimosa:
 
Ingredients:

• One large bottle of your favorite sparkling wine (I love a good crémant)
• 1 bottle of your favorite fresh orange juice
• Frozen strawberry slices

 
Directions:
 
In champagne flutes or wine classes add the frozen strawberries (as much as you would like), fill the class halfway with sparkling wine and top off with the orange juice.
 
 
What better way to spend an afternoon or evening with your partner or with your family, creating wonderful memories that will last. 
 
Get free printable recipe cards with ingredient list HERE to make your planning and preparation easy.
 
For a little more fun you can use this printable picnic menu HERE that you can set out on the blanket to add a little more picnic flare.

Plus, I will send you a link to the template location so that you can customize the cards and the menu as you like. 

Recipe Card Preview

Menu Preview

GET YOUR FREEBIES

​I hope that you all enjoy your at-home picnics and I would love to hear about your experiences or your favorite picnic recipes in the comments below.
 
Design YOUR Life ~ Be authentic. Be You. Be Sharp.
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