picnic food – RefreshHer

Happy July! That means Fourth of July picnics, picnics at the park, picnics at the lake, and also picnics in the backyard! We LOVE eating outdoors and do so at any opportunity! But with that, there’s always the need to be careful with food preservation. After having food poisoning once, I’ve been quite careful about keeping food cold!

It’s for that reason that I recently went searching for a recipe for potato salad to take to our church picnic this weekend that didn’t require any mayonnaise. The German potato salads are vinegar based, making them the perfect addition. I found a great recipe on Taste of Home’s web site. I made it a day ahead so we could have some for supper, and then also enjoy it at our church picnic.

German potato salad is typically served warm. It was delicious that way when I first made it, but it was also good cold the next day. The recipe calls for several kinds of potatoes to make it “red, white and blue.” I used what I had on hand – red and yellow potatoes. It didn’t change the taste at all. Here’s the recipe:
Red, White and Blue Potato Salad

1-1/4 pounds small purple potatoes (about 11), quartered
1 pound small Yukon Gold potatoes (about 9), quartered
1 pound small red potatoes (about 9), quartered
1/2 cup chicken stock
1/4 cup white wine or additional chicken stock
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1-1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1-1/2 teaspoons stone-ground mustard
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground pepper
6 tablespoons olive oil
3 celery ribs, chopped
1 small sweet red pepper, chopped
8 green onions, chopped
3/4 pound bacon strips, cooked and crumbled
3 tablespoons each minced fresh basil, dill and parsley
2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds

Directions

Place all potatoes in a Dutch oven; add water to cover. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cook, uncovered, 10-15 minutes or until tender. Drain; transfer to a large bowl. Drizzle potatoes with stock and wine; toss gently, allowing liquids to absorb.
In a small bowl, whisk vinegars, mustards, salt and pepper. Gradually whisk in oil until blended. Add vinaigrette, vegetables, bacon and herbs to potato mixture; toss to combine. Sprinkle with sesame seeds. Serve warm.

This salad is delicious either hot or cold, and there’s no worry of it spoiling since there’s no mayo! This would be the perfect addition to your Fourth of July gathering!

Enjoy a worry-free Happy Independence Day!

When I was growing up, summer picnics almost always included a special dessert made by my mom – Fried pies. She usually made Peach Pies, but another flavor we all loved were the Apple variety. They are made with dried fruit that has been cooked and sweetened. The dried fruit keeps the filling from being too runny and seeping out. The pies are fried in butter just until they’re browned nicely on all sides. They’re not especially pretty, but man oh man, are they good!

If you’re having a picnic for July 4th, maybe you could start the Fried Pie Tradition for your family!

Here’s how they’re made –

Buy one bag of dried fruit -peaches or apples. (One bag makes A LOT of pies! You’ll usually find these where the raisins are in the grocery store. Place the fruit in a medium-sized pan and add water and cook over low heat until the fruit plumps up. Add sugar to sweeten to your liking. Cook until fruit is soft. This takes a while. Cook them slowly. Set aside.

Either make your own pie dough, or you can use store-bought. Roll dough out and cut out circles, about 4 inches in diameter. Place about 2 tablespoons (no more) on half of the circle. Fold dough over.

Crimp edges with a fork.

Melt half of a stick of butter in a skillet and melt over medium low heat. Add pies and cook in batches,turning to brown all sides.

Place on a paper towel-lined baking sheet to absorb extra butter.

These are super good warm, but they’re also delicious at room temperature!

Note: You may need to add butter as they are frying. In between batches, I wipe the pan out with a paper towel so the butter doesn’t turn too dark and color the pies before they start to cook.

These are so great for picnics because all you need is a napkin. It’s a hand-held pie; perfect for on the go!

Wouldn’t this make a great addition to your Fourth of July picnic?!

From my country kitchen,

Tag: picnic food

Mayo-Free Potato Salad

Directions

Hand-Held Fried Apple Pies