Packing a Summer Picnic (Vegan & Healthy)

04:32 Soph 1 Comments

One of my favourite things about summer is spending time with the people closest to me, in a beautiful location whilst laughing and eating amazing vegan food. Picnics are the type of activity traditionally exclusive to summer however you don't have to just limit yourself to the warm weather, picnics indoors are just as fun if you have great company and good food! For me, vegan lunch and picnic-esque options were the most difficult to think of as snack foods are often filled with unnecessary dairy products, however I have created a compilation of foods that are idea for these types of situations and would also be great for school / work lunches (though I have a full post on that coming shortly!).

HOW TO HAVE A SUCCESSFUL PICNIC (VEGAN & HEALTHY)

1. Location - For me personally, location is key when having a picnic as it just completes the whole ambience of the day. My favourite picnic spots are fully immersed in nature, such as forests, riverside locations, the beach and on the moors being some of the best. Make sure that there is an area suitable for setting out your picnic blanket and check the regulations of the area to ensure you are allowed to picnic there. It would also be a good idea to pick a day with suitable weather as you are going to be outside for a lengthy amount of time and you don't want to be spontaneously rained on! (Although I did see a post on Pinterest about a couple who had their anniversary picnic in the rain and they hung umbrellas on the trees which was incredibly cute! You can view that here if you would like.)

2. Picnic Essentials - The most essential step for a successful picnic is ensuring that you have everything you need, as there is nothing worse than getting to your beautiful, secluded location to discover you left the picnic blanket at home! I would recommend the following items as picnic essentials :

- Picnic Basket : I use an authentic wicker picnic basket that is quite large and fits in all the food that we usually bring, however you could use a cool bag / rucksack or even a carrier bag for this.

- Picnic Blanket : Unless you are one of those people who enjoys sitting at picnic tables, a picnic blanket is essential! Make sure yours is big enough to sit on and lay out the food, and most importantly make sure it is comfortable! If you feel like you could be sitting on hard ground, cushions are also a great thing to bring to a picnic!

- Warm Clothing - Even if it is a brilliantly warm day, you never know when the sun will go behind the clouds or when the wind will pick up (especially in England) therefore I would always recommend bringing extra layers just in case!

- Napkins / Wet Wipes - We had a bit of a disaster with salsa getting everywhere during our picnic but luckily we brought plenty of napkins as a precaution. When packing food for any occasion, you never know when something might spill out everywhere so having emergency napkins or wet wipes is a must!

3. Picnic Food - arguably the most important part of the picnic, it's good to decide what type of picnic you are aiming for before you good food shopping (otherwise you'll end up throwing everything in sight in your trolley). We were having this picnic around 4 / 5pm so it was a mix between lunch and dinner meaning that we wanted substantial foods that were mainly snack orientated, as well as some sweet treats. The foods we brought were 100% vegan, mostly healthy and included:

- Hummus & Carrot Sticks

- Salsa & Tortilla Chips

- Tomato & Basil Couscous

- Avocado, Hummus, Pesto & Salad Sandwiches in Sundried Tomato Ciabatta Rolls

- Strawberries, Blueberries, Grapes & Mango Chunks

- Mini Donuts

- Strawberry Lemonade

Preparing your picnic food at home as opposed to packing your basket straight from your shopping eliminates any unessecary rubbish or plastic wrapping when you are on your picnic. We decanted the tortilla chips, carrot sticks and mini donuts into large airtight jars so that they would remain fresh and to maximise space within the basket. We decanted the hummus, salsa and couscous into glass ramekins with lids so that we could just take the amount that we were going to eat and no food would be wasted. For the fruit, we just kept it in its original packaging, and the sandwiches we prepared at home. For the Strawberry Lemonade we decanted it into a large glass, sealed top bottle and we brought with us some jars (with handles) to drink it out of.

The sandwiches were my favourite dish as the flavours went so incredibly well together! To make them we just sliced a sundried tomato ciabatta roll in half and spread pesto on one half, hummus on the other. Then we sliced up an avocado and placed it inside along with some mixed baby salad leaves, and it was complete!

If you would like to see any more of my pictures from our picnic I shall leave some below and also there will be some posted on my instagram (@positivesoph). I hope you have enjoyed this post and it has inspired you to have a picnic this summer! If you do happen to have one then I would love to know about it and see your pictures! You can tag me on instagram, tweet me at @positivesoph or email me at positivesoph@gmail.com ! Have a beautiful summer !!