Let’s Talk Food: Have a perfect picnic all year here

Picnics have no season here in South Florida. These casual meals eaten on the beach, on a boat, in a park or under a tree occur all through the year.

What better way to celebrate our nation’s independence on the Fourth of July than a picnic?

Webster defines a picnic as an excur­sion or outing with food that is eaten in the open. Many of our childhood memories of picnics recall those carefree meals of munch­­ing, crunching and drinking refreshing beverages in the wide-open spaces where nature provides the setting.

Ernest Hemingway loved picnics, which he described in lyrical lan­guage as pleasurable moveable feasts. He wrote with passion and nostalgia of picnics in Spain, France, Cuba, England, Key West and in his home state of Michigan. He feasted and drank at the most fashionable and famous restaurants and watering places in the world, yet valued and cherished the pastoral pleasures of picnics.

If you received an invitation from Queen Victoria back at the turn of the century you might be fortunate enough to be included in a picnic party at which her highness presid­ed. Her picnics were not of plebian nature; instead elaborate food and wine were prepared and served by a retinue of chefs and servers.

You might increase the pleasure of the holiday by getting a copy of William Inge’s famous “Picnic.” It received rave reviews as a play and later a film with William Holden and Kim Novak.

Ruebens and Seurat celebrated picnics in unforgettable works of art that hang in the great museums of the world. “A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte” brought to life Seurat’s characters as they gathered together to rejoice in the wonders of nature.

Picnics are a universal pleasure, enjoyed throughout the world. The French claim they are masters of the picnic or, to be more exact, the picnique. Drive through the French countryside as noon approaches and you’ll see entire families in their tiny Peugeots or Renaults gazing as if mesmerized in search of the ideal picnic spot. Not just any verdant meadow will do; there must be shade, flowers and a bucolic vista to serve as a backdrop for the forthcoming feast.

French peasants originated picnics as they worked in the fields and took their noonday meals in the outdoors. These farmers may have started pic­nics, but the modern version of this culinary event would never have developed had it not been for the English.

The English were frequent visitors to France and, while traversing the French countryside, they observed the French peasants eating in the fields. The English, being fond of the sun and the outdoors, thought this was a smashing idea and quickly brought picnics to English meadows, hillsides, terraces and along babbling brooks.

Not satisfied to serve simple fare, they began to develop menus and recipes that elevated the picnic from an ordinary midday meal to haute cuisine. Not long after these sophis­ticated travelers began their outdoor rituals they, in typical English tradi­tion, organized the London Picnic Society.

While the English may labor away at preparing the ultimate picnic feast, our Fourth of July picnic planners turn to delis, supermarkets, catering services and fast food restaurants for a feast that is typically American.

Sandwiches: The most convenient finger food available. Make your own from simple to sublime. All the way from dainty cucumber or wa­tercress sandwiches to magnificent subs. Consider tuna salad, sliced roast beef, corned beef, sardines and sliced onions, liverwurst and cheese, fried fish and any combination that suits you. And make sure you have a cooler to ice down any sandwich, especially those with mayonnaise, meat, fish and cheese.

Salads: Naples’ delis and super­markets offer wonderful salads, rang­ing from Caesar, pasta, chicken, tuna, vegetarian and that all-important traditional potato salad. (Again, use caution and plenty of ice).

Chicken: There’s always the Colo­nel standing ready with that spicy fried chicken but don’t forget the great roasted chickens at the deli as well as barbecued birds.

Delicious delicacies: Add a bit of extravagance to your picnic with pates, a bit of caviar, some smoked salmon, deviled eggs, crudites and crackers with goat cheese, or a de­lectable dip.

Sweet endings: Keep that dessert simple but tempting. Cookies, cup­cakes, brownies and lemon bars are easy to handle and add sweetness to your picnic.

Coolants: Take plenty of bottled water and such thirst quenchers as lemonade, iced tea, fruit drinks, soft drinks, wine coolers, beer and, if you insist, chilled Champagne.

Ask Doris

Q: When I lived in New York my best friend, who is Jewish, frequently invited me for dinner. She was a great cook and my favorite was a noodle casserole with fruit. She is coming for a visit and I want to surprise her with that dish. Now all I need is a recipe.

— Gloria Melkamp, Estero

A: Surprise, surprise! Hope your friend appreciates your efforts.

Noodle casserole with apples, raisins and apricots

(Lukshen Kugel)

Ingredients

6 to 8 quarts of water

4 teaspoons salt or to taste

¼ pound broad egg noodles

4 eggs, beaten

6 tablespoons sugar

9 tablespoons vegetable oil

2 medium apples, peeled, cored and cut into ¼-inch dice (about 2 cups)

13 cup seedless white raisins

½ cup dried apricots, cut into ¼-inch dice

¼ teaspoon cinnamon, combined with 1 tablespoon sugar

Preparation

■ In a large pot, bring water and 3 teaspoons salt to a boil over high heat. Drop in the noodles, stir with a wooden spoon and boil for 15 minutes, or until they are tender. Drain the noodles and place in a large bowl.

■ Preheat the oven to 350. Toss the noodles with the eggs, sugar, 8 tablespoons of the vegetable oil, the remaining teaspoon salt, the apples, raisins and apricots.

■ Coat the bottom and sides of a 2-quart casserole with the remaining tablespoon of oil and pour in the noodle mixture. Sprinkle the top with the cinnamon-sugar mixture and bake in the center of the oven for 40 minutes. Serve hot as an accompaniment to meat or poultry.

Serves 6 to 8.

Doris Reynolds is author of “When Peacocks Were Roasted and Mullet Was Fried” and “Let’s Talk Food,” for sale in the lobby of the Naples Daily News. Also available is a four-part DVD, “A Walk Down Memory Lane with Doris Reyn­olds.” Contact her at foodlvr25@aol.com.

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