The art of the picnic
Recapping my first picnics of the season
I’ve talked about it before and I will talk about it again (and again and again) and that is my love for picnics. I feel as if I’m on my way to mastering the art of the picnic (yes, it is an art) and I want to share what I’ve cooked for my inaugural picnics this season. There are many factors that go into crafting the perfect picnic menu (I wrote about all my tips and tricks here!) but my main focus is on the food’s durability. Meaning that the food can hold up when being carried the 10 minutes from my apartment to Sheep Meadow or even across the city and it will still be just as good as when I made it.
So, if I’m making a salad, sturdy greens (such as little gem and radicchio) and grains (such as farro, quinoa, and rice) are my go-to. They’re more impervious to the sogginess from dressings, unlike tender leafy greens (such as arugula and watercress). Nonetheless, arugula and watercress are perfect summer greens and deserve a place on your picnic blanket from time to time. Just dress them once you get to the park or really lightly dress beforehand with a small squeeze of lemon juice and drizzle of olive oil, trying to not wilt the greens before packing them up. There are certain instances where you want the leafy greens to wilt into the dressing and that is obviously an exception to this “rule”.
Alternatively, you can add the dressing to the bottom of the bowl and top with the greens. Once you get to the park, toss everything together and serve! This is one of my favorite hosting tricks—the greens rarely wilt on top of the dressing and the salad is all set for when you’re ready to toss and eat it. Even if you’re not taking your salad to a picnic, this is hands down the best way to evenly and gently toss any and all greens in a thick dressing, like Caesar (not so much for a vinaigrette that is much lighter). This way the leaves aren’t weighed down when coated. Once you try this method, you will never go back to adding the dressing to the bowl after the greens—it really allows for a more uniform dressing.
Without further ado, here are my menus for my first few picnics of summer 2025. I am so happy with these dishes and I would happily make them again and again (and you should, too!). Stick around for more picnic menus to come throughout the summer!
Caesar Salad Wraps with French Fries
I am a sucker for Caesar salad wraps. It’s a classic picnic dish for a reason! They’re super easy to assemble, super satisfying to eat, and always a crowd pleaser. I have never once suggested Caesar salad wraps and been told “no thanks”. Think about it! Have you ever been sad while eating a Caesar salad wrap? I truly don’t think it’s possible!
Since I don’t eat meat, I add flaked cooked salmon to mine but chicken, steak, shrimp, or just avocado work just as well. They’re so easy to customize to personal preference and seasonal ingredients (another perk of making these for picnics). I have been making a tahini Caesar dressing (I follow this recipe and it adds a little extra pizzazz to the classic) and tossing it with chopped little gem, dill, toasted panko, and diced avocado. Then wrap in the largest tortilla you can find! Rather than searing the folded tortilla after assembling, I like to char the tortilla over the open flame on the stove and then wrap it so it’s pliable—a little tip I borrowed from What’s Gaby Cooking!
For this picnic with Lauren, I made za’atar roasted fingerling potatoes as a side. Because you simply cannot have Caesar salad of any kind without a crispy potato—and that’s a hill I’m willing to die on.
Raw Fish Summer Rolls with Mango, Cucumber, & Halloumi Salad
Summer rolls are another one of your most classic picnic dishes because they hold up so well, are quite compact, and light fare. Usually they’re stuffed with tofu or shrimp but Molly inspired me to use raw fish and I think it’s so genius (she discovered this take on the classic at a restaurant in New Orleans). I decided to use tuna and salmon from the very best raw fish market in NYC, Osakana in the East Village. I rolled up the rice paper with thinly sliced planks of the fish, little gem leaves, vermicelli rice noodles, matchstick cucumber and watermelon radish, and thinly sliced snap peas and avocado. They were a little stuffed but, as you know, I love a veggie-packed meal. So the more the veggies, the better!
I made a tahini dipping sauce (because tahini is superior to all other nut butters) with soy sauce, rice vinegar, maple syrup, and sesame oil. Summer rolls are never complete without some version of a nut butter dipping sauce.
Since I brought in some mediterranean flavors with the tahini, I decided to play into the Vietnamese-Israeli fusion in the salad. I wanted to make some type of cucumber salad and after scouring the internet for ideas, I came across a mango, cucumber, and halloumi salad on the NYT. It felt like a perfect marriage of this fusion I had accidentally created. I tossed the salad with a pomegranate vinaigrette that consisted of lemon zest and juice, a splash of red wine vinegar, olive oil, Dijon, pomegranate molasses, and sesame seeds.
Meyer Lemon Shrimp with Mediterranean Couscous Salad and Ramp Vinaigrette
I built this meal entirely around the ramp oil that I made a few days prior. I wanted to do a twist on a pasta salad since they hold up so well for picnics. As per usual, I went the Mediterranean flavor route, using pearl couscous as the base and tossing it with cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, seared halloumi, Kalamata olives, arugula (we want it to wilt here!), and crispy shallots. If Zulfi wasn’t allergic to nuts, I would have added pistachios but I do feel as if the crispy shallots add a similar crunch. I sprinkled the crispy shallots on top, rather than mixing them into the salad so that they didn’t get soggy and held their crisp. For the vinaigrette, I whisked the ramp oil with lemon zest and juice, a splash of red wine vinegar, Dijon, and honey until emulsified.
I gave Zulfi and Nic their choice of protein and since Zulfi is allergic to many, many things, he decided on shrimp. I tossed it with Meyer lemon zest and seared it in the cast-iron skillet until golden brown and opaque. I served it with big wedges of Meyer lemon. I feel like shrimp is one of those proteins that still tastes good at room temperature, making it a good picnic food. I cooked it last and packed it up when it was still warm so when I got to the park, it was still slightly warm and not chewy at all (like shrimp can be if its overcooked).
