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 Go barefoot, eat with your hands, lick your fingers, dress comfortably and put your elbows anywhere you want. Picnics break all of the etiquette rules. Outdoor dining means anything goes, even eating dessert first, and as often as you want.
Some desserts transport easily and seem to be natural picnic fare. Big batches of bars, cookies or cupcakes that can be put together with a minimum of fuss and appeal to children of all ages make good choices. They're easy to serve, don't require plates and folks can help themselves whenever they feel like it. Sturdy desserts, like poundcakes and coffeecakes, that still look inviting after being bounced around and can take the heat on a warm day are good, too. Room-temperature desserts are the easiest to carry, but there's usually a cooler along for something that may need to be kept cold. Of course, it might not be so bad if the sun warms the chocolate chips in some Breakaway Chocolate Chip Cookie Crunch or softens the chocolate topping on Super S'mores. Obvious desserts to avoid include custard-based ones that may spoil, meringue pies that will wilt and multilayered cakes that don't take well to rough handling. Fragile desserts are also less-than-ideal picnic fare, such as those with boiled or fluffy icings that melt. And, of course, avoid any sweets that are best served (and eaten) immediately after assembling. It's easiest to bring all desserts ready-to-serve by cutting up any bars or cakes before you leave home. And remember that everyone is going to have a fresh air appetite, so throw in a few extra cookies and plan on seconds and thirds. Lemon-Glazed Blueberry Cupcakes Easy to carry along, cupcakes seem to have been invented for picnics. The dense batter keeps the blueberries scattered throughout, and the lemon glaze topping makes a frosting that stays neat on a warm day.
For the Cupcakes:Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 18 medium (½-cup) muffin tins with paper cupcake liners. For the cupcakes: Mix the blueberries with 2 tablespoons of the flour in a small bowl and set aside. Sift the remaining flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon together and set aside. On medium speed, beat the butter and sugar in the large bowl of an electric mixer until it lightens in color and looks fluffy. Add the eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the vanilla and beat for 1 minute. On low speed, alternately add the flour mixture in three additions with the milk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Use a large spoon to gently stir in the blueberry mixture. Divide the batter among the 18 muffin tins, filling the paper liners to about ¼ inch from the top. Bake in the preheated oven for about 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Cool the cupcakes for 5 minutes in their pans. Transfer the cupcakes in their paper liners to a wire cooling rack to cool completely. Prepare the glaze: Mix lemon juice, lemon rind and confectioners' sugar in a small bowl until smooth. Spread a thin layer of the glaze over the top of each cupcake. Makes 18 cupcakes. Per cupcake: 183 calories, 3 gm protein, 30 gm carbohydrates, 6 gm fat, 39 mg cholesterol, 4 gm saturated fat, 44 mg sodium Super S'Mores These s'mores are as simple as layering store-bought ingredients in a pan-not even a mixing bowl is necessary. And then all you have to do is bake them briefly to melt the marshmallows. Even the chocolate chips for the topping melt by themselves when sprinkled over the hot marshmallows. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a 13-by-9-by-2-inch pan with heavy aluminum foil, letting the foil extend over the ends of the pan. Line the bottom of the pan with the graham crackers. There will be 1 row across of 5 graham crackers and another row across of 5 graham crackers trimmed slightly at their ends to fit the pan. Use the trimmings to fill in any spaces at the ends. Place the marshmallows evenly over the graham crackers. Sprinkle the pecans evenly over the marshmallows. Bake in the preheated oven until the marshmallows become puffed and light brown on top, about 9 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and immediately sprinkle the milk chocolate chips evenly over the hot marshmallows. The marshmallows will deflate as they cool. Let sit at room temperature for 5 minutes or until the chocolate chips melt. Use a thin metal spatula to spread the now melted chocolate chips evenly over the marshmallows. Let the bars sit until the chocolate is firm, about 3 hours, or refrigerate just until the chocolate is firm, about 40 minutes. Use the overhanging ends of aluminum foil to lift the bars out of the pan. Peel the foil away from the edges. Cut into 36 bars, 4 rows lengthwise and 6 rows across. Slide the bars off the aluminum foil. Serve within 2 days. Makes 36 cookies. Per cookie: 97 calories, 1 gm protein, 11 gm carbohydrates, 6 gm fat, 1 mg cholesterol, trace saturated fat, 21 mg sodium Elinor Klivans's latest book is "Bake and Freeze Chocolate Desserts" (Broadway, $25). |
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