The Ultimate Guide to Food for the Perfect Family Picnic

A family picnic is a great way to enjoy the outdoors, bond with your loved ones, and make memories that will last a lifetime. But planning a picnic can be tricky. You want to make sure you have enough food, but you also don't want to bring anything that will spoil or be difficult to eat.

Spring and summer months always bring picnic outings in our little corner of the world. There's nothing better than spreading out a blanket in the grass or a tablecloth on a park picnic table for a family picnic on a beautiful summer day. To make your next outing perfect, we've gathered our favorite crowd-pleasing food ideas, along with some simple tricks for packing it all up. Let's get you ready for a fun, stress-free day that everyone will love.

Food Ideas:

• Sandwiches: Sandwiches are a classic picnic food for a reason. They're easy to make, easy to pack, easy to eat, and there are endless possibilities when it comes to fillings. Some of our favorites include:
  • Ham and cheese.  I almost always have sliced deli ham, turkey and cheese on hand, so this is my go-to sandwich--especially when we plan a last minute picnic!
    
  • Veggie.  If you are skipping the meat, it's just as easy to layer some chopped veggies onto your favorite sandwich bread.  My husband often requests this veggie, feta & hummus sandwich instead of a meat based one.
    
  • Chicken or tuna salad
  • BLT.  I love packing BLT's because I can cook the bacon a day or two in advance and pack these sandwiches in minutes the morning of a picnic.
    
• Wraps: Wraps are another great option for picnic food. They're just as easy to make as sandwiches, but they're a little more portable. Some of our favorite wrap fillings include:
  • Hummus and vegetables.  We love carrots, cucumbers, red onion and red or yellow pepper slices with a spicy red pepper hummus!
    
  • Chicken Caesar
  • Buffalo chicken salad.  If you like a little spice, this buffalo chicken salad wrap is tasty, easy to make and easy pack.
    
  • Veggie wrap
• Salads: Salads are a simple, healthy option for picnic food. They're also easy to customize to your family's taste. They are a little more difficult to eat on the go--but, if you prepackage them into serving sized containers, they are definitely a healthy picnic option.  Some of our favorite salads for picnics include:
  
  • Caesar salad
  • Cobb salad.  Instead of traditional Cobb salads, I usually pack up Leftover Lunch Salads.  I toss a random assortment of meat, cheese and veggies onto a bed of lettuce and our picnic lunch is served!
  • Taco Salad.  Much like my Leftover Lunch Salads, I make Taco Salads for lunch the day after nacho or taco night with leftover ingredients.  These also make fun picnic lunches with some tortilla chips and homemade guacamole for dressing.  
    
  • Pasta salad.  This Greek pasta salad is one of my most-requested pot-luck and picnic dishes. 
    
  • Fruit salad.  This can be as simple as grapes and cut up melon.
    
• Snacks: No picnic is complete without snacks! Here are a few of our favorite picnic snacks:
  • Chips and dip
  • Fruit
    
  • Vegetables
  • Trail mix or Sriracha Snack Mix
    
  • Crackers and cheese
• Dessert: Of course, no picnic is every fully complete without dessert! Here are a few of our favorite picnic desserts:
  • Cookies.  I keep it simple with some chocolate snickerdoodles or classic peanut butter cookies
    
  • Brownies
  • Fruit salad
  • Cake.  Easy sheet cakes, like this zucchini bread cake, or individual single-portion-sized cakes like these mini pineapple upside down cakes are easy to pack into serving containers and easy to eat on the go.
    
  • Pie

Packing and Transporting Tips:

• Pack your food in airtight containers. This helps keep your food fresh and keeps it from leaking out all over your cooler or picnic basket.
• Use a cooler to transport your food. This will help to keep your food cold, especially if you're picnicking in hot weather.
• Pack various food choices. Packing a somewhat unique assortment of food options makes it more likely that everyone has something they like to eat.
• Don't forget the drinks! Pack plenty of water, juice, or other drinks to keep everyone hydrated.
• Pack a trash bag. This will help you to keep your picnic area clean.

Planning a family picnic doesn't have to be difficult. By following these tips, you can throw a picnic that everyone will love. So gather your family and friends, pack your food, and head out to the park for a day of fun in the sun!

Need some new picnic gear? Here are some of our must-have picnic favorites in our Amazon storefront.