The Perfect Picnic at the Playground: Easy Hacks for Swinging into Summer

With warm spring days already upon us and hot summer days on the horizon, more and more time spent outdoors will be encouraging us to find more tips and tricks to eat outside. From organized sports to beach days, playdates at the playground or even in our own backyard, the coming months will be full of activities when most of us will be packing bags full of snacks to avoid having to stop somewhere to eat – or worse, having to press pause on the summer fun to run home for a meal. A more exciting – and more involved – prospect that can be an event in itself is planning a whole picnic at your local playground or park.

Photo credit: Pixabay

How to prepare:

• Instead of a basket: Try a picnic backpack that has everything you could ever need artfully organized, including reusable plates, cups and utensils – that will also lead to less trash – not to mention the convenience of carrying it on your back and keeping your hands free to hold onto a bike, a child or both.
• Instead of bowls: Use a muffin pan for bitesize snacks such as fruits, vegetables, raisins or nuts – the individual holes are great for sharing and they stay well organized. If you are bringing sandwiches or planning to grill, you may also put condiments in another muffin tin to make it easier for everyone to customize their sandwiches or burgers.
• No lids, no problem: To keep dirt and bugs out of your drinks, simply place a cupcake liner over each cup and punch a straw through – which will also help to keep it in place. (On a related note, did you know that you can also prevent your straw from floating out of your canned drink by turning the tab over the opening and placing the straw through it?)
• Instead of a tablecloth: If you are tired of your tablecloth blowing in the wind, try a fitted twin sheet – it makes the perfect table cover for most standard picnic tables.
• Don’t forget the shower curtain: There is nothing worse than picking a nice spot in the shade, laying your blanket down and once you sit… you realize it’s actually wet. Bring a shower curtain liner (or the plastic table cover you don’t need on the table) and put it under your blanket.
• Keep ants and bees away: Fill a spray bottle with water, add 12-15 drops of peppermint essential oil, and spray it around your blanket to keep the ants away. If you add a dryer sheet under each of the four corners, those will also keep the bees away.
• Don’t forget the waste: While your playground may be good about putting out garbage bins – and hopefully emptying them regularly – many places don’t offer recycling bins. So, make sure you pack at least two garbage bags and dedicate one of them for recycling.

What to eat:

• Mini sandwiches: Get mini rolls, cut them in two and put your favorite mini sandwich fillings such as meat and cheese, or peanut butter and jelly inside. If you keep the veggies and condiments separately, the sandwiches can be prepped the night before and will stay perfectly fresh in the fridge.
• Individual servings: Don’t fuss with a whole bowl of salad that people may or may not finish. Make individual servings in mason jars or plastic cups with lids. If you want to add dressing beforehand, put it at the bottom of each jar, then add your veggies, and finally any toppings such as seeds or croutons. You may prep different versions with fruit salad or carrots and celery sticks with the dip at the bottom, too. Or, bring an entire meal such as pasta or barbecue in a jar by layering beans or pasta, meat, sauce or coleslaw and cheese on top.
• Sliced fruit: Cut up apples or pears in advance and then fit them back together, putting a wide rubber band around the fruit. (Note: narrow rubber bands will roll off!) This will keep the slices from turning brown and keep children from only eating a few bites of a whole fruit.
• Nuts and seeds: Bring a bag of mixed nuts, almonds, sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds for an easy and healthy snack. While some of these may be bland on their own, their roasted versions usually pack a lot more flavor. You may do your own roasting at home easily – chickpeas with a dash of seasoned salt or walnuts with some sugar and cinnamon will win over even the pickiest of snackers.
• Dried fruit: Dried fruit can be preserved for much longer than fresh fruit and can be a handy snack, particularly when spending an extended period outside. The most common varieties are raisins, dates, prunes and figs. The varieties that children are willing to eat are more along the colorful and recognizable lines, such as craisins, apricots, blueberries and banana chips. You may also combine all of the above and create your own version of a trail mix with peanuts, almonds, sunflower seeds and dried fruit, for example.
• Cold drinks: Freeze bottles of water – not only will they cool you down when you are in the sun, they can act as alternative ice packs – both for food and for the occasional booboo. You may freeze fresh lemonade or juice boxes as well and let them thaw at the playground. Frozen grapes and berries can also be a great substitute for ice cubes.
• SURPRISE! Grab a set or two of plastic Easter eggs – you can even use an egg carton to transport them. Fill each with different bitesize snacks, such as baby carrots, broccoli, grape tomatoes, cheese, pretzels, berries or nuts, and let your picnic guests discover what’s inside.