The Picnic

March 15, 2015

A growing number of cookbooks--including Teri Lyn Fisher and Jenny Park's Tiny Food Party! and Jennifer Shea's Trophy Cupcakes & Parties!--explain how to plan enviable gatherings with professional aplomb. Similarly, this charming planning guide from food writers Hanel, Andrea Slonecker, and Jen Stevenson demonstrates how to throw a picnic for two to 20 guests. Perusing these colorfully illustrated pages, readers will learn how to select an appropriate site, cope with inclement weather, transport unwieldy or temperature-sensitive foods, and assemble a "glorious" charcuterie board. The authors' classy recipes for appetizers, salads, drinks, and more (e.g., kale panzanella with burnt lemon Caesar dressing, smoky tea-brined fried chicken, vanilla bean shortcakes with strawberries in basil syrup) all include thoughtful instructions for storage and serving. VERDICT A fresh look at outdoor entertaining that's just in time for spring and summer. Highly recommended.

Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 15, 2015
Separately, Hanel, Slonecker, and Stevenson have impressive portfolios of cookbook, blog, and magazine writing under their belts. Here, as proud members of the Portland Picnic Society, they have created a summery guide to outdoor eating that’s full of tips, recipes and quaint illustrations. The authors have never met a list they didn’t like, and they scatter many throughout the book. Several are more whimsical than practical, such as “99 Ways to Use a Mason Jar” (#99: small hat), but most are food driven and fairly irresistible. Their choices for “Ten Best Baguettes” include a simple strawberry and Camembert sandwich, as well as a more complicated country pork pâté, while “The Deviled Dozen” offers 12 variations on the classic egg snack, utilizing pesto, curry powder, dill, and olive tapenade. About 100 recipes are spread across five conversational chapters: Bites, Salads, Plates, Sweets, and Sips. There are some creative versions on favorite dishes, such as the smoky tea-brined fried chicken: prior to being battered, the chicken rests in a sweet brine of honey, orange, and lapsang souchong tea. And for the utensil-deprived, or those wishing to keep Yogi Bear at bay, there are six different “salads on a stick.” The Cobb involves skewering a cube of ham, half a hard-boiled quail egg, a cherry tomato, a bit of bacon, and a crumble of blue cheese.