Pondering a Picnics-Only Plan

On Friday night, we went to a fundraiser concert near Lincoln Park. It was an earlyish show, so we decided to meet in the park—Kevin coming from work and me emerging from the haze of studying in which I now live—to precede the show with a picnic. We found a shady patch of clover-filled grass, looking to escape the 90-degree heat, and set up shop, smoothing out a thin blanket and unpacking our picnic basket (actually, a picnic shopping bag, but who cares).

We dined on sandwiches (thin baguettes, split lengthwise, jaws stuffed with roasted vegetables and goat cheese, in my case, and soppresata and mozzarella in Kevin’s case), a vinegary tomato salad, some potato chips dusted with sea salt and black pepper, and a few wedges of watermelon. And, if you must know, we also sipped on a tasty beverage: San Pellegrino Limonada mixed with a glug or three of vodka, all poured into a thermos (actually, an empty Perrier bottle, but who cares; as you can see: we were going for disposable).

(Click “more” for the rest of the story, more photos & the recipes.)

I loved this picnic so much that I almost felt bad for the rest of the weekend: I knew it could never live up to the picnic. And since then, I keep wondering why we don’t eat all of our meals just that way: sidled up to a thick tree trunk, under a curtain of low-hanging boughs, sitting cross-legged and trading bites of this and that. I suppose studying is getting in the way for now, but come August, I think we might just have to give the picnics-only plan a try (oh, August: I love you and your post-bar-exam-ness already). When we do, I’ll be sure to report back.

Sandwich recipes always seem kind of silly, but here goes:

Roasted Vegetable & Goat Cheese Sandwich

1/2 baguette, sliced lengthwise
1 1/2 ounces goat cheese
1 red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch wedges
1 zucchini, sliced lengthwise into 1/4-inch slices
1 small red onion, sliced into 1/4-inch rings
1 to 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
salt & pepper
several basil leaves
handful of baby spinach or arugula

Preheat the oven to 425. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and set aside.

Toss the sliced pepper, zucchini and onion with the olive oil, salt and pepper. Spread the vegetables on the prepared baking sheet in a single layer. Roast for 25 to 30 minutes, until the vegetables are soft and browned.

On the cut side of one baguette half, spread the goat cheese, pile up the roasted vegetables and top with the basil and greens. Top with the remaining baguette half.

Caprese Sandwich with Soppresata

1/2 baguette, sliced lengthwise
2 ounces fresh mozzarella, sliced into rounds
1 tomato, sliced into rounds
6 to 8 basil leaves
2 ounces soppresata or salami

On the cut side of one baguette half, pile up the mozzarella, tomato, basil leaves and soppresata. Top with the remaining baguette half.