Wednesday, July 9, 2008

Mark Bittman's 101 Picnic Ideas and only 6 Pastas

I do love Mark Bittman and I love picnics. So how lucky am I that he just wrote probably the best article yet -101 Picnic Ideas...even if there were only six pasta dishes in the lot.

You can check out the article for yourself and pick out your favorites, but I thought I'd share a few that I'm definitely going to try...

BEET SALAD Peel beets and grate them (a food processor will keep the juice contained). Add pistachios or hazelnuts; dress with orange zest and juice, and olive oil. Add bits of goat cheese and chopped parsley.

CURRIED EGG SALAD Make egg salad with hard-cooked eggs, mayo, curry powder, Dijon mustard, fresh lime juice, salt, pepper, cilantro, red onion and, if you like, diced apple.

WHITE BEAN SALAD (cooked or canned) tossed with chopped seeded tomato, chopped anchovy, chopped olives, oil, lemon juice, lots of black pepper, salt if necessary and parsley.

ROASTED RED PEPPER SALAD (jarred are O.K., piquillo are even better) Puréed with feta, marjoram or oregano and parsley, olive oil and garlic. Serve as a dip.

TUNA SALAD SANDWICHES -he has three kinds, but here's my own personal favorite - tuna, mayo, chipolte in adobo sauce, fresh cilantro.

COLD PEANUT NOODLES Cook Chinese egg noodles or regular spaghetti. Drain and rinse. Toss with sesame oil, peanut butter (or tahini), sugar, soy sauce, ginger, vinegar, black pepper (lots) and chili oil (optional). Pack shredded seeded cucumber, cooked shrimp and chopped scallions separately.

ASIAN SOBA SALAD (but say it quietly, Mark doesn't like pasta salads) Shred carrots and zucchini. Mix lime juice, soy sauce, grated ginger and sesame oil. Cook soba noodles, drain and rinse under cold water. Toss noodles with the vegetables and dressing.

And since I did mention a few pasta dishes....the perfect segue to... Presto Pasta Nights.

Don't forget this week Gay A Scientist in the Kitchen is hosting. Send your entries to ascientistinthekitchen AT gmail DOT com and check for the roundup on July 11.

Plus...Don't forget to check all the Presto Pasta Night Roundups dating back to March, 2007, see who's hosting for the next four weeks and check out guidelines and tips for entering and hosting.

Over at Presto Pasta Nights there are also pasta-related posts that I hope you like.

3 comments:

Rosa's Yummy Yums said...

The kind of picnic food I love! Wonderful!

Cheers,

Rosa

Fitness Foodie said...

Me too love this stuff for picnics.

Anonymous said...

Than ks for the link Ruth. Lots of excellent ideas there. I sure am trying the cold soba!