Browsing Tag:

picnic

on
June 30, 2015

Garlicky Tomato Pasta Salad with Sea Beans

garlicky-pasta-salad-3

‘Tis the season for picnic-ready salads here in the ol’ U.S. of A, especially with July 4th coming up this weekend. And because nothing goes together with amateur pyrotechnic displays as well as easy-to-eat and easy-to-share food from a cooler, I’m here to help with a delicious garlic-filled pasta salad.

garlicky-pasta-salad-1

A bonus is that there is minimal stove time involved (just however long it takes to boil water and cook your pasta of choice) so you don’t have to sweat it out too much to put this together. This is vitally important when you live in a city where air conditioning is a luxury and not a given, despite outside temperatures regularly reaching rotisserie-levels. Seattleites insist that the heat wave will only last for about a month.

“Only.” Read more

on
July 21, 2014

Picnic-Ready Pole Beans & Chicken Salad

pole-bean-salad---hero-2

Ah, summertime. The sun is out and we’re all lying around the beach indulging in glamorous champagne picnics. Or, maybe we don’t live in The Great Gatsby and/or Narnia, so maybe our summer outdoor dining experiences don’t involve butlers and buckets of perfectly chilled bubbly. Booo.

But hey, we don’t need all that. What we do need is excellent company, a venue relatively free of mosquitoes, and delicious, portable food. I’m sure you’ve got the first part covered, so I’ll help out with the third. (And uh, throw me a line when you’ve got the second part figured out because that one I’m still struggling with. *slaps mosquito*)

pole-bean-salad---prep-1

pole-bean-salad---prep-2

This luscious bean and chicken salad makes use of the in-season pole beans springing up in gardens and markets everywhere, and it has the added bonus of being more refined than hastily assembled sandwiches. The beans are barely cooked through so they stay nice and crisp, and the garlicky aioli adds a nice kick and binds everything together. The bits of roasted chicken tucked inside… well, who doesn’t love roast chicken? (If you have someone in mind, don’t trust that person.)
Read more