Happy Monday to you all, I hope you had wonderful weekends! All being well, Mr CC and I should be on our way to the Lake District for our camping holiday (!) and I am beyond excited about switching off and leaving any stress at home just for a few days. I am also very happy to introduce the first of my guest posts from the lovely ladies at The Simply Living Blog - they are so positive and friendly and their blog is filled with inspirational quotes and envy-inducing travel photography - do check it out if you can; I'm sure you'll want to after reading their post...
Hi Readers!
For those of you who don’t know us, we’re Suruchi and Hannah, the bloggers behind The Simply Living Blog. We’re so excited to be posting on Eleanor’s lovely blog today while she’s having fun on her trip! Before anything else, we wanted to say a big thank you to Eleanor for thinking of us to guest post for her. We absolutely love her blog and are constantly inspired by her ability to see beautiful things all around her. (Plus she has a super amazing garden filled with the most delicious looking fruits and veggies!)
If our blog name didn't already give it away, it's easy to guess that we love to blog about the simple things that inspire us and give us a chance to just enjoy life. Though there are lots of simple things we enjoy, there’s just something special about planning a summer picnic. (Suruchi was super excited about this one, as she is just a little obsessed with picnics…) So, we only found it fitting to share with you guys a little "how to" on how we plan the perfect picnic.
We see lots of people putting together these extravagant baskets full of food and wine and dishes and flowers and everything else they can find. (Really, have you seen the picnic photos all around Pinterest??) We prefer a much simpler approach. You don’t need to bring everything from your kitchen in order to put together a great picnic! Just pack one dish plate per person, a few bowls that you may need for your food, a fun picnic blanket and basket (Hannah found the blanket that we used and it even comes with a handy carrying handle!), and some great friends.
When it comes to the eats, keep your picnic food simple! It makes things easier when you can bring finger foods and you don’t have to worry about bringing utensils to serve everything. Here’s what we’ve found is the best formula for picnic food:
-A rustic baguette/sandwich -Fruits of your choice -Cheese -Drinks
It’s a small list, but it covers all the basics and keeps things easier for you! When you’re going on a picnic, it should be all about the experience of being outside and enjoying your company and scenery, not worrying about spooning out food and organizing everything.
With the bread, we think it would be lots of fun to bring a fresh baguette to rip apart and you could eat it with the cheese or bring along your favorite jams. If you do a sandwich like the ones we had, here’s a little tip to keep the bread from getting soggy: put the filling or dressings in between a bed of leafy greens so that it acts as a separator between the bread and wet ingredients! Fruits like berries (especially in the summer) are super easy to travel with and make for great finger food, and the same goes for cheese! For drinks, we kept it southern and made some iced tea. Grab some mason jars and fill them up with your drink of choice as they make transporting drinks really easy and they even prevent spills! Plus, they keep things super rustic and seriously, it’s just lots of fun to drink out of a jar. (:
Lastly, just have fun! Going on a picnic is such a great experience if you’ve never done it, and if you have been on a picnic, then you know how amazing it is! It’s so great to be outside, eat good food, and just enjoy some time with friends. It’s a simple thing really, but it’s one of those simple joys that just brings a smile to our faces. (:
We hope we could inspire you to get out there and go on a picnic before the summer winds down! Get out there and enjoy some time with people you love! We hope y’all have a wonderful week ahead of you!
-Suruchi and Hannah