One of my favourite parts of summer is being able to eat alfresco. Just pack yourself up lots of tasty goodies and head off to some open space and take in the beautiful weather whilst having your own outdoor feast. Another reason why I love picnicing so much is the fact that there is no washing up and clearing the floor of all the mess the children have created. Last year we probably had a picnic two or three times a week and towards the end of the summer I had got really bored of the usual sandwich, crisps and a biscuit combo. So with our first festival planned I decided to make a bit more effort and start the picnicing season with something a little special. My sister had a traditional hamper that I borrowed and I popped into my local Tiger store and picked up some fantastic picnic ware. I had a bit of a green and blue theme going on with a new blanket for £7, some very pretty paper plates and snack trays for £2 a packet and my favourite item were some fab jam jars with straws for a bargain of £2 each. The kids absolutely loved them! Now was time to get the food ready. Having to cater for seven people I wanted things that were quick, easy, transportable but most of all tasty. First up were your traditional rolls. I made salmon and cucumber and grated mozerella with onion chutney. Instead of them sweating in a sandwich bag I wrapped them in brown paper and tied them with string. 
Number three loves to get involved so I let her prepare some skewers that she placed alternate ham, mozerella balls, olives and sundried tomatoes on. So easy but taste lovely. 
I make some chicken skewers that a simply marinated in some jerk seasoning with a little oil and then grilled for around 15 mins turning occasionally. 
Number three also prepared a tasty summer fruit salad of chopped strawberries, grapes, blueberries and raspberries. This was then drizzled with the juice of one lime and a squeeze of honey plus a few mint leaves. 
My favourite part is the naughty sweet part!! I found a fantastic idea on Instagram that capturebylucy had posted. She took a Barney bear that can be bought at any supermarket and just inserted a lolly stick into the bottom. Number five thought they were great. So that number four was not left out due to his allergies I made some super easy Rice Krispie lolly pops. That I had adapted off of a recipe on the packet I had seen a while ago. 
Finally our favourite on the house is a Malteser cake that I have been making for years; but we only had that a couple of weeks ago so I found a bit of a twist on what I normally make on Bake.Play.Smile. Here I found the biscuity base of this Malteser traybake similar but they had added a layer of white chocolate with whole Maltesers to decorate. 
To finish off the basket we added a couple of bottles of fizzy, flavoured water and some vegetable crisps and headed off to enjoy our feast while taking on the festival atmosphere. It was a hit all round.
Can I come? Love the picnic ideas, everything on sticks looks so cute! #foodpornthursday
Ha ha thank you. Your more than welcome if you like you picnics a little manic!! X
Love these ideas, something i demo have to try. I like new ideas for picnics, other than the usual sandwich and crisps! 🙂 #foodpornthursday x
I’m glad you got some ideas. We were bored with the norm too xx
WOW, so many food to choose. If I were your kids I wouldn’t leave the basket even for a minute.
#foodpornthursdays
My kids love picnics! We have it on our summer bucket list. Looking forward to trying the rice krispy lollipops. Stopping by from #foodpornthursdays!
That’s great, let me know how they go x
Wow! This sounds fabulous. I love a picnic and so do my boys. They also love anything on a stick, from chicken to fruit to icecreams, so pretty much everything you mentioned here would suit them. Thanks for sharing this. Great ideas!
#foodpornthursdays
Fionnuala from http://www.threesonslater.blogspot.com
That’s great Im so glad you’ve found some ideas. We all enjoyed this so much more than a soggy sandwich and packet of crisps!! X
I love a good picnic, ,although your food is putting mine to shame! It looks amazing! Better than my ham sandwiches and sausage rolls! Thanks for linking up to the #BinkyLinky
We usually have a soggy sandwich and packet of crisps so that’s why I fancied a change!! X
I want you to come and pack our next picnic basket – this looks so amazing!!!! #foodpornthursdays
Ha ha thank you. I’ve set the goal a bit high for every picnic now!! X
Your picnic looks yummy especially the fruit thanks for linking to the Binkylinky
Thank you, the honey and lime made a real difference
Very cute and looks tasty! I love a picnic 🙂
Me too, saves on the clearing up!! X
What a magical and special picnic you prepared!! I LOVE the little details, your kids are so lucky to have a mommy that takes the time to make such a lovely experience for them. Thanks so much for linking up with #foodpornthursdays x
Thank you so much. I’m sure my children wouldn’t agree with you!!!
I’ve set the bar high with this picnic so I will now have to keep it up all summer xx