Memorial Day is over, and July Fourth is just around the corner. If you’re like me you look forward to summer parties. I love getting to wear a pretty little sundress and relax with friends. At first glance, it can be difficult to stick with real, nourishing foods at picnics and barbecues when everyone around you is eating junk. I really hate the feeling of being picky and different when I have to refuse potato chips, soda, and buns for my hamburger. So, I decided to turn the tables. I get a kick out of bringing food with me that is so delicious everyone wants to try it, even those people who don’t like “healthy stuff.”
So, what are healthy alternatives to the standard picnic fare? There’s actually tons of things. A lot of it is just home-made versions of the same things everyone else is making, where I can control the ingredients: veggie salad with home-made mayo; fruit gelatin (jello); white bean hummus with carrots and snow peas for dipping; pastured, grass-fed hamburgers, or nitrite-free hotdogs.
Here are a couple of my favorite picnic recipes:
White Bean Hummus
I’m not big on measuring things when I cook. I tend to ballpark it and throw in whatever I have on hand. For this recipe I shoot for equal amounts of beans and tahini, but if it’s not exact, it doesn’t matter.
I cook a large amount of beans in the crock pot and then freeze them in half pint containers. In the crock pot, put about twice as much water as beans. Cook on low until the beans are soft, two to four hours. Keep an eye on them to make sure all the water doesn’t cook out.
Place one cup of beans in the food processor. Add a cup of tahini, maybe half a cup of extra virgin cold-pressed olive oil, a clove or two of garlic, a sprinkle of cumin, dash of cayenne pepper, a tablespoon or two of lemon juice, about a half teaspoon of Celtic sea salt. Pulse until all the ingredients are blended. Taste and see what it needs more of.
I like to serve this with carrots for dipping. I slice the carrots long ways, so they feel more like chips.
Strawberry Fool
This is another of my favorite summer recipes. Made with raw cream, grass-fed gelatin and fresh local strawberries, it epitomizes the decadent diet. Simple to make, full of healthy fats, enzymes, and immune-boosting and healing properties.
It’s light and delicious and always gets rave reviews.
And a few more:
Bacon Potato Salad with lacto-fermented mayo To make this low carb/GAPS legal, substitute cauliflower for the potatoes. It's really good.
Slow-Cooker Carolina Barbecue The crockpot is my best friend—especially in summer when the stove makes too much heat. Sub honey for the brown sugar in this recipe to make it healthier and GAPS legal.
Hamburgers with Lacto-fermented ketchup and Sauerkraut. Sugar-free Ketchup that’s actually good for you. Probiotics make your hamburgers and everything that goes with them more digestible.
Coconut Milk Vanilla Ice Cream Rich in wholesome anti-viral, anti-bacterial, anti-microbial, anti-fungal coconut and raw honey.
Thanks to Mommypotamus for these ideas and others on her blog The Ultimate GAPS Guide To Picnics & BBQ’s
So, what are healthy alternatives to the standard picnic fare? There’s actually tons of things. A lot of it is just home-made versions of the same things everyone else is making, where I can control the ingredients: veggie salad with home-made mayo; fruit gelatin (jello); white bean hummus with carrots and snow peas for dipping; pastured, grass-fed hamburgers, or nitrite-free hotdogs.
Here are a couple of my favorite picnic recipes:
White Bean Hummus
I’m not big on measuring things when I cook. I tend to ballpark it and throw in whatever I have on hand. For this recipe I shoot for equal amounts of beans and tahini, but if it’s not exact, it doesn’t matter.
I cook a large amount of beans in the crock pot and then freeze them in half pint containers. In the crock pot, put about twice as much water as beans. Cook on low until the beans are soft, two to four hours. Keep an eye on them to make sure all the water doesn’t cook out.
Place one cup of beans in the food processor. Add a cup of tahini, maybe half a cup of extra virgin cold-pressed olive oil, a clove or two of garlic, a sprinkle of cumin, dash of cayenne pepper, a tablespoon or two of lemon juice, about a half teaspoon of Celtic sea salt. Pulse until all the ingredients are blended. Taste and see what it needs more of.
I like to serve this with carrots for dipping. I slice the carrots long ways, so they feel more like chips.
Strawberry Fool
This is another of my favorite summer recipes. Made with raw cream, grass-fed gelatin and fresh local strawberries, it epitomizes the decadent diet. Simple to make, full of healthy fats, enzymes, and immune-boosting and healing properties.
- Dissolve a tablespoon of gelatin in a tablespoon of hot water. Whip a pint of raw cream to stiff peaks.
- Mascerate (mash with your hands to form small chunks) a quart of strawberries. Mix the gelatin into the strawberries, then fold into the cream.
- Spoon into individual glasses and chill for 2 hours before serving.
It’s light and delicious and always gets rave reviews.
And a few more:
Bacon Potato Salad with lacto-fermented mayo To make this low carb/GAPS legal, substitute cauliflower for the potatoes. It's really good.
Slow-Cooker Carolina Barbecue The crockpot is my best friend—especially in summer when the stove makes too much heat. Sub honey for the brown sugar in this recipe to make it healthier and GAPS legal.
Hamburgers with Lacto-fermented ketchup and Sauerkraut. Sugar-free Ketchup that’s actually good for you. Probiotics make your hamburgers and everything that goes with them more digestible.
Coconut Milk Vanilla Ice Cream Rich in wholesome anti-viral, anti-bacterial, anti-microbial, anti-fungal coconut and raw honey.
Thanks to Mommypotamus for these ideas and others on her blog The Ultimate GAPS Guide To Picnics & BBQ’s
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