One of our favorite summer time activities as a family is to spend the day under a giant oak tree at one of our local parks with a giant paleo picnic. It get’s really darn hot here in Chico but we have tons of trees and shade so often the best reprieve from the Chico heat is to find the coolest spot in the grass with some yummy paleo eats.
Last weekend we had our first family picnic and we were joined by little Kayden of Growing Up Paleo while his mom and dad rested at home with his new baby sister, Rylee Rae!
Here’s what we packed for our picnic and hopefully our food will give your families some ideas for the summer months ahead as you head outdoors for some fun in the sun!
Picnic Chicken Salad
3-4 cooked chicken breasts, diced into bite size pieces
1 apple, diced
4 celery stalks, diced
1 – 8oz can of sliced water chestnuts, diced
1 cup diced green cabbage
Homemade Mayo to taste
Pepper to taste
Mix all ingredients together!
Tuna Salad
3 – 6oz cans of tuna
Chopped pickles
Chopped celery
Mayo to taste
1/2 tablespoon dried dill
Pepper to taste
Mix all ingredients together
We also packed a bunch of fresh sliced veggies. We love to scoop up the chicken or tuna salad with cucumber slices or bell pepper strips! I also packed some pickles, olives, celery sticks with sunflower butter and raisins, sliced watermelon, and blueberries, blackberries and raspberries.
Oh, and I almost forgot, I made some Deviled Eggs!!
Deviled Eggs
6 hard-boiled eggs
Enough homemade mayo to make the yolks smooth.
Dried dill
Onion powder
Pepper to taste
Paprika
Cut the eggs in half, scoop out the yolks, and mash together with enough mayo to make the mixture smooth. Add the garlic, dill, and pepper and mix well. Fill each egg half with the mixture and sprinkle some paprika on top of each egg.
I also brought some smoked salmon!
It was a feast fit for kings and queens and I can’t wait for more days of food and fun in the sun with my family.
What are your favorite paleo picnic ideas? Please share to comments.
As always, enjoy!
Lacto-fermented dilly carrot sticks, any kind of fruit cut into easy to eat pieces, any kind of raw veg with homemade ranch. I like the cabbage in the chicken salad idea. I might have to throw some in my next batch.
I love chicken salad on a picnic (or anywhere really). My favorite is Avocado Chicken Salad where you use avocado instead of mayo. Yum! http://www.livingcrunchy.com/2012/05/paleo-meal-monday-avocado-chicken-salad/
Looks delicious! Great ideas for summer picnics just in time now that the kids are out of school. Thanks for sharing! 🙂
The smoked salmon looks good!
On Sunday, my girlfriend and I had a picnic. We had movie tickets reserved for later in the day, so we packed our food and headed off into a nearby mini-mountain where we ate watermelon and ribs followed by pumpkin cheesecake (made using good, clean ingredients) and coffee. Because the movie didn’t start for 90 mins after we had finished eating, we took a nap in the fresh air, with our bellies full. It was awesome!
Nice blog by the way. I have just come across it via another website.
What a great day!!!
Im a sucker for artichokes, so I’d add that as another fun picnic food item.
Quick question.
We are on day 11 of the 30 day challenge and it’s gone about 99% good so far. I do have a question on alcohol. We wanted to get some beer and talked about what kind would be best (or the least bad) I chose miller 64 with low carbs and all, she chose redbridge wheat free beer, it’s a sorghum beer with 127 calories and 12 g carbs. We are going to drink, I just want to make the best choice. What would you think is better, or is there something else you would recommend?
Thanks again.
Just a comment on the beer question, I LOVE redbridge – mostly due to the fact that after going gluten free, I can’t tolerate the gluten hidden in most beer…. I don’t know what the official answer will be regarding your goals for the 30 day challenge, but redbridge is my pick! 🙂
Mich ultra has a new gluten free beer . There is also another brand called ” The Angry Orchard” which is gluten free it is a hard cider though.
Angry Orchard is fantastic. Makes my husband almost not miss his beer.
If you are going to drink, yes, go for the gluten free option for sure or stick to clear alcohol’s and no sugary mixes. For example, shot of vodka or tequila, ice, lots of lime juice, and soda water (NOT tonic water).
Wow I am glad I came across this post. My friends are planning a picnic & I was itching for some yummy ideas!
As for the alcohol discussion – I usually avoid it altogether, except for wine, once in a blue moon. It just isn’t fun or relaxing for me. Plus most of the drinks have gluten anywayz. Of course I wouldn’t mind using red wine vinegar in my cooking!
what a nice way to spend the day with your family! your chicken salad looks wonderful. my husband & i are eating paleo now & i love using your recipes. they are quick, easy, and very tasty.
Everything tastes better outside!
I agree!! Love to eat outside.
PB&J apple slices made into “sandwiches” make a great dessert. So do mashed banana with cocoa powder, or grilled peaches.
On the less sweet side, mashed yams with grilled poblano or chipotle peppers, and crudites with guacamole dip!
Love this picnic post. I actually took a class last spring on picnics and have a goal to do many of them this summer, as soon as our weather gets better.
I’ve got a question and am not sure where else to post it, so here goes:
Started Paleo on June 3 and lost 6 lbs in the first week. Now I am well into my second week and I am steadily gaining a lb. back per day. I am not doing anything different than I did the first week. I’m a bit discouraged to say the least, because I had a pretty lofty goal of losing 10 lbs the first month. (A friend I am doing it with has lost 11 in 2 weeks).
Could it be exercise? I upped my Zumba classes to 3 times a week (used to go once). Could it be nuts and fruit? I will have a handful of almonds or some almond butter or an apple or a few berries as a snack. Are there some people who just can’t lose eating those foods?
Thanks in advance to all who have input for me.
While you are waiting for a formal sarah reply, I thought I would share my own experiences during my early Paleo days.
The exercise component for me ended up being a factor for body shaping/composition (leaner, more muscles) more so than weight loss/weight gain over the long haul, and those changes happened after a year or longer of consistent “getting physical” in my garage “gym” 3 times per week.
Although a lot of Paleo Peeps say toss the scale out the door, I did not, I have tracked my weight weekly for years, I really like seeing the progression from my Pre-Paleo days to now, it did not end up a frustration factor for me (in the past the scale was an evil device for me while I followed a Weight Watchers diet, yikes!).
Anyway…nuts & fruits did make a difference for me personally during my earlier stages after transitioning to Paleo. I would munch on a good amount of Paleo-friendly Lara Bars, daily eat both fresh & dried fruits, nuts, etc by the handfuls & I did see a weight gain. When I limited my fruit/nut intake (hardly any fruit at all, a nutty snack 1-2 times a week) after about a month or two, I saw the weight loss start happening again. I then decided to stick with limited fruit/nut intake until I arrived at where I felt the happiest both in weight and body shape.
Today, I feel like I am exactly where I want to be, and I maintain my current weight (give or take 2-3 lbs) WITHOUT formally adjusting my food choices. I eat Paleo meals to the point I am satisified, and that does now include fruits/nuts 3-4 x weekly.
I was actually just reading a really good blog post from Robb Wolf on this topic. http://robbwolf.com/2012/02/06/paleo-diet-am-i-losing-enough-weight/
Best quote of the post: “If you choose to drive the boat your own way, focus on the scale, you will do neurotic s*** and you will scuttle the effort.”
I am seriously just as guilty as the next person about the scale. Tuesday I resolved to cut back to weighing only on Fridays. I then weighed myself yesterday and today…. Still, though, it is best if you can just take some time and go with a focus on performance and feeling better. Then you can add back the scale to start playing with what works best for you. Some people struggle when eating fruits or nuts. Sometimes it’s easy to get carried away with, “But it’s Paleo…” and fudge the portion sizes.
Totally agree about avoiding the scale early on & just focusing on how you feel daily. I am where I want to be healthwise & I only step on the scale once a week when I send my workout logs to my ” Trainer” (husband programs safe workouts for me). If I started feeling the need to step on there more often, I would totally toss the scale out the door. And any sort of small fluctuation in weight does not concern me, but if it ended up 10-15 lbs over a couple of months & my clothes were fitting differently, then I would re-visit my food choices.
Love these picnic paleo food ideas!! Great for summer. 🙂
OMG I can’t stop eating! I made this chicken salad
– the chestnuts
+ diced red onion, red bell pepper & salt
and I let it sit over night to chill, and it is the best chicken salad ever. It’s crunchy (I LOVE crunchy) and refreshing. Thank you for sharing it.
Hi, I just was turned on to your website and I’m so excited already. I just started a 6-week Paleo Challenge and want to keep things yummy and interesting for me and my hubbie. I heard that the Lamb Burgers were amazing. I’m making them this weekend. Question for you, how long does the Paleo mayo last?
The mayo usually lasts up to two weeks in the fridge, in an airtight container. Enjoy!
I like the picnic ideas!! Do you have travel recipes? We are going on a road trip for 2-3 weeks. We are traveling by motorhome, but I won’t be able to just cook everyday all day. (nor do I want to) any suggestions?