Holiday Weekend, Picnic Plans!

Soak up some sun while reveling in friends, family, and a taste of the outdoors. This holiday weekend should include a picnic. Regardless of the social agenda, attending or hosting gatherings or a clear schedule, the picnic will always fit the bill. From simple to over-the-top, the ways to incorporate a picnic this Memorial Day Weekend are countless.

The Italian style picnic can be customized as rustic and simple for two, or as a bountiful, yet manageable option for large crowds. The Italian staples consist of bread, olives, a pasta dish that can be enjoyed at room temperature, and various roasted vegetables. This style picnic is great for anytime of the day and can be spread out in any location, even on a blanket in the backyard.

Sample Italian Picnic Menu:

Fresh Italian Bread, such as Semolina, Bastone, or Ciabatta
Assorted olives
Pappardelle with olive oil, fresh lemon, fresh basil, fresh mint
Roasted zucchini, red, yellow, and orange peppers, tomatoes

Use the more traditional picnic fare but, opt for a theme. Whether it be seafood, sandwiches, or a grill menu. Hosting a backyard party with a food theme keeps the essence of simplicity a picnic boasts in tact. Cover outdoor tables with kitschy plaid tablecloths and newspaper for a lobster, crawfish, and crab boil complete with shell crackers for guests. Arrange dishes of drawn butter, fresh lemon halves, and various spices throughout the table. The boiled seafood, corn, and potatoes can be served straight from the table. The same family-style set up can be implemented for a "make-your-own" sandwich bar or with the necessities for grilling out. All options adhere to a relaxed crowd (and host/hostess) present simply to enjoy being outside, eating, and mingling with other guests.


Photo courtesy of potterybarn.com

Sample Traditional Picnic Menus:

Shellfish Boil
Various shellfish (lobster, crab, crawfish, shrimp, mussels)
Corn on the cob
Red skin potatoes

Sandwich Bar
Variety of each:
Rolls, lettuce, pickles, roasted vegetables, cheese, deli meat, mustard, mayo, hot peppers
Homemade potato chips w/crumbled blue cheese

Grill Menu
Marinated chicken (choose 2 favorite styles, such as Caribbean Jerk and Teriyaki)
Grilled fresh fruit, watermelon, pineapple, peaches
Asparagus
Portobella mushrooms
Assorted salads

The picnic will travel with whatever the weekend may bring. Prep an actual picnic basket (or buy a pre-arranged set with price points from $15-$350 on Google shopping search engine, surely one will be suitable) to have ready for impromptu invitations. Neighbors said come over? The basket is an exceptional means to transport food to contribute to the pooled meal. A more thoughtful approach, such as for a host/hostess gift, would be to fill the picnic basket with favorite food items (barbecue sauce, gourmet spreads, honey, jam) for their enjoyment in the future. Pack a favorite cheese and fruit pairing to share that day if asked to bring a dish.


A National Geographic Favorite Picnic Spot: Villa Borghese Gardens, Rome, Italy Photograph by Hemis/Alamy

Grab a Frisbee and the picnic basket and go. Host a sensational party, with ease. Share food favorites with great company. In any style, the picnic should be a priority and the pinnacle of enjoyment during the long weekend. Happy Memorial Day!


What are some of your favorite picnic foods?

Share pictures to our Facebook page of your Memorial Day picnics... we'd love to see Pino Gelato quarts/pints Scooping Some Happiness during celebrations this holiday weekend!

La Famiglia

 

Mamma Agata, facebook.com

Family is everything.  Beyond raising wholesome, successful, and loving individuals that conduct themselves with regard to society, family life as Mecca is the ultimate goal of many households in our country.  Italy and the USA share many similarities as far as family and celebration are concerned. 

A mecca is a point of recreation, gathering, and center for a particular group.  Italian mothers are known to be the axis on which their family spins, the matriarch is held with the most regard.  Italians are drawn to their homes by mamma to dine on traditional cuisine and share stories from the day (or  at least on a weekly basis, even once grown).  Italian-Americans typically do not move far from each other considering this tradition and the glue the Italian mother has laid doesn't stretch very far. 

In Italy, Mother's Day is celebrated the second Sunday in May, same as ours this year! The day starts with church and focuses on showering the mother with love, gifts, and treats throughout the day, she is not expected to cook or work.  Though certainly most do not hand over their kitchen to just anyone.  Mother's Day is a chance to bring about tradition to the epicenter of love in the family and to dine and to help spread the joy to all that she provides all year.  Families are there for each other, daily, in business, and in a place that draws us back time and again.  Family is home. 

Certainly all families have traditions that bring them together, allow for those to shine bright this Mother's Day. The base of the family, the love that keeps the group together, the mother created core, is what family is all about.   Show appreciation for family-based culture and become proof of that time being worth everything.  Make being together a bit sweeter and a bit more Italian this year and allow us to  Scoop Some Happiness to your family on Mother's Day!



A scoop of Pino Gelato for Mom = smile!