Before you gather all your friends together, there are a few things we need to go over so you will be well prepared for this fun and joyous day.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son,that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal live. John 3:16 (NIV)

- Date: Obviously you are going to want to pick a day when all your guests can come and join in on the fun. Also make sure to check ahead on the weather forecast. I wouldn’t try and check too far in advance, the meteorologists can try to predict the weather, but there's never a 100% guarantee. Just keep your eyes open for any changes.

- Time: You want to schedule the picnic around having enough daylight for food and activities. If you have it on a Saturday you can pick whatever time you want for the picnic to start. A lot of people don’t have to wake up early on Sunday for work so none of your guests will feel pressed for time. However, if you decide to have the picnic on Sunday I suggest thinking about having your guests meet you around 11ish, that way you will have the whole afternoon to eat and enjoy the activities outside.

- Location: Nothing beats a great picnic in a big fantastic park. Usually parks have a special shaded picnic area for the public. If you have a park in mind, go check it out before you start telling your friends to go there. Also try and find a park with a lot of grass area so once everyone is done eating you can play some fun outdoor activities. If there will be children coming along, having a big playground would be key.

- Invitations: A simple phone call would work for this type of party but if you decide to send out invitations check out some of these links below. Don’t go out and buy invitations when you can just spend a few minutes on the computer and pick out some free printable cards to send out.

American Greetings.com
BlueMountain.com
Evite
MyCardMaker.com
NetFunCards.com

- More than just the picnic basket

Though food is what’s important at a picnic, you can also plan on bringing games and planning activities as well to keep your guests happy and having fun on this gorgeous spring day. Here are a few items you should think about packing and bringing with you to the park:

Deck of cards and poker chips
Football
Whiffle ball and bat along with some plastic baseball plates
Frisbee
Bocce Ball Set

You should also have a list made ahead of time with what supplies you need so you forget anything. You don’t want to get to the picnic site and realize your forgot something. Here is a starter list for you:

Sun Screen
Garbage Bags
Plastic Utensils (bring extra) and paper or plastic plates
Paper Napkins
Paper Towels
Corkscrew (if drinking wine)
Bottle Opener (for the beer drinkers)
Insect Repellent
Hand Sanitizer
Cooler for beverages and food

Now for the important part, the food. Since most parks don’t supply you will a grill, assume you don’t have one for this day. And considering you will be having a pretty decent amount of people coming, you will want to be able to socialize rather than cook all day. The easiest thing you can do is buy an assortment of deli meats along with French bread rolls and lots of condiments. Not only is this easy to pack but gives you more time to prepare and make some of the side dishes.

SIDE DISHES

**Spinach Dip**
Ingredients

1 frozen pkg. chopped spinach
1 loaf sheepherder’s bread
1 C. sour cream
1 C. mayonnaise
1 envelope dry vegetable soup mix
3 green onions, chopped (optional)
1 small can water chestnuts, chopped (optional)

Directions

Put the frozen spinach in a colander and run water over it until it is thawed out (or put it in the refrigerator ahead of time to thaw it out). While you are doing this, cut the top of the bread off to make a bowl. Chop up the top of the bread and save it to use for the dip. Scoop out the bottom part of the bread to make a place for the dip. Wring out the spinach with your hands to get out all the water. Mix all the ingredients together (except the bread) and put in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours. Fill the bread bowl with the dip and serve with the bread, crackers or vegetables.

**Vegetable Dip**
Ingredients

1 C. Sour Cream
1 C. Hellmann's Mayonnaise
1 tsp. Seasoned Salt
1 tsp. Parsley Flakes
1 tsp. Dill Weed
1 tsp. Onion Flakes

Directions

Combine all ingredients. For Spinach Dip: add 1 (10 oz.) pkg. frozen spinach, defrosted, drained & squeezed out excess liquid with paper towels.

LEAF SALADS

**Tomato, Mozzarella and Basil Vinaigrette**
Ingredients

3 lg. ripe tomatoes, sliced
1 lb. mozzarella, sliced
1/2 C. olive oil
2 Tbs. wine vinegar
2 Tbs. finely chopped fresh basil
Salt & pepper to taste

Directions

In a large serving dish, alternate slices of tomatoes and mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle with oil, vinegar and basil. Season with salt and pepper. Serves 6 people.

**Spring Salad**
Ingredients

For Salad:

3 C. washed baby spinach leaves
3 C. washed and torn salad greens
1 C. sliced strawberries
2 kiwi fruit, peeled and sliced
1/4 C. sliced almonds
1/4 C. sliced mushrooms
1/4 C. snow pea pods
1/4 C. mandarin orange slices.
1 medium red onion, thinly sliced

For Dressing:

1/4 C. orange juice
2 Tbs. honey
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp. poppy seeds
Salt
Pepper
2 Tbs. olive oil

Directions

Toss together the spinach leaves, salad greens and other salad ingredients in a large bowl. For dressing, combine the orange juice, honey, mustard, poppy seeds and salt and pepper to taste in a small bowl until well mixed. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil, whisking constantly until the dressing is mixed. Toss the dressing with the salad or serve on the side.

Yield: 6 Servings

FRUIT DISHES

**Fresh Fruit Salad**
Ingredients

Favorite combos:
Strawberries, Oranges, Pineapple and Kiwis
Strawberries, Blueberries, Raspberries, and Blackberries in the summer
Oranges, Pineapple, Kiwi, Mango, Papaya, and Star fruit are nicely tropical and good with exotic
food like Pacific Fusion or Indian cuisine.
Apples, Oranges, Grapes, and Bananas in the winter
Watermelon, Cantaloupe, and Honeydew Melon.

6 C. of mixed fresh fruit
1 C. of Simple Syrup (1 C. of sugar mixed with 1 C. of water, brought to a boil, and simmered for 5 minutes)
Seasonings for the Syrup (such as a few spoonfuls of Brandy or Liqueur, Lemon or Lime Peel and Juice, or Ginger Julienne)

Garnish:
A decoratively cut piece of fruit, candied fruit peel, candied ginger, mint leaves, etc.

Directions

Prepare the simple syrup. (We make it by the quart and store it in a jar in the refrigerator.) If you like, you can add seasoning to the syrup and let it soak up their flavorings for 60 minutes or more, before adding the syrup to the fruit. Strain the syrup before adding it to the fruit. Cut up the fruit in attractive pieces. Arrange the fruit in a large bowl (we like layers in a glass bowl, especially well). Pour over the syrup and chill.

POTATO SALADS

**French Potato Salad**
Ingredients

7 Potatoes, approx. 2 lbs
1 tsp. Tarragon, chopped
1/4 C. Onion, chopped
1/2 C. White wine, dry
2 Tbs. Shallots, chopped
1/2 C. Olive oil
1/2 tsp. Garlic, chopped
2 Tbs. Wine vinegar
1/4 C. Parsley, chopped
Pepper, freshly ground
1/4 tsp. Red hot pepper flakes

Directions

Rinse and drain the potatoes but do not peel them. Put them in a large saucepan. Add cold water to cover and bring to the boil. Simmer for about 20 minutes, or until tender. Cut the potatoes lengthwise in half. Cut each half into thin slices. Put the potatoes in a bowl and add the remaining ingredients, including pepper. Stir gently. Yield: 10 servings

**Red and White Potato Salad**
Ingredients

2 lb. small new red potatoes (about 12)
1/4 C. red wine vinegar
1 Tbs. Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp. salt
1 Tbs. finely chopped fresh dill or 1/4 tsp. dried dill weed
freshly ground pepper, to taste
1 clove garlic, minced or pressed
1/2 C. olive oil
6 green onions, thinly sliced
1/4 C. chopped parsley
1/4 C. mayonnaise
1/4 C. sour cream
1 C. sliced radishes
Hard-cooked egg slices, optional for garnish
Fresh dill sprigs for garnish

Directions

Place potatoes in a large pot, add salted water to cover, and bring to the boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium and cook until potatoes are tender, about 25 to 30 minutes. Drain and slice while warm. Place potatoes in a large bowl. In a small bowl, mix vinegar, mustard, salt, dill, pepper and garlic. Gradually whisk in oil until well combined. Pour oil mixture over warm potatoes, stirring gently to coat. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours. Gently mix in onion and parsley. Blend mayonnaise and sour cream until smooth, and fold into salad. Cover and refrigerate from 1 to 3 hours. Just before serving, gently mix in radishes. Garnish with egg slices and dill sprigs, if using.

PASTA SALADS

**Pasta and Fresh Fruit**
Ingredients

1 1/2 C. uncooked spiral pasta (plain, not tri-colored)
1 8 oz. can pineapple chunks
1 8 oz. carton peach yogurt
2 Tbs. sour cream
1 1/2 C. cantaloupe, cubed
1 C. seedless grapes, halved
1 1/2 C. fresh strawberries, sliced

Directions

Cook pasta according to package directions; rinse in cold water and drain. Cool completely. Drain pineapple, reserving 2 Tbs. juice; set aside. In a small bowl, combine the yogurt, sour cream and reserved pineapple juice until smooth; cover and refrigerate.

In a large bowl, combine pasta, pineapple, cantaloupe and grapes. Just before serving, stir in strawberries and pour yogurt mixture over top of salad.

Tip: To cut down on calories and fat, you can opt to use non-fat yogurt and sour cream. You can add your favorite fruits to this salad and make it even more colorful and tasty.

** Italian Pasta Salad**
Ingredients

16 oz. Rotini pasta
8 oz. can of tomato sauce
1 C. Italian dressing
2 Tbs. dried basil
2 Tbs. dried oregano
1 C. sliced mushrooms
5 Roma tomatoes, coarsely chopped
1 medium red onion, chopped
2 1/4 sliced ripe olives, drained
1 large cucumber, coarsely chopped

Directions

Cook and drain pasta, rinse with cold water. Mix tomato sauce, dressing, basil, and oregano. Add remaining ingredients and toss.

When it comes to beverages, what you need to decide first off is whether you are supplying all the beverages or if you are asking your guests to bring something.

Once this is decided, make sure there is enough pop (diet and regular), water, beer and wine to go around.

Most importantly, right before you get to the picnic site, go to a nearby gas station and stock up on plenty of ice to keep all your beverages and food (if needed to be refrigerated) cold.

** For many more great recipe ideas for side dishes please visit http://www.recipe4living.com.

© 2007 Ampere Media LLC, All Rights Reserved Recipe4Living.com features more than 11,000 user submitted recipes, ideas and recipes from Wolfgang Puck, reference guides, healthy living advice, tips for kids, and much more. All of the recipes mentioned in this article can be found at http://www.recipe4living.com

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