The Sol Journal

Summer Picnic Spread

recipes

Summer Picnic Spread

05 December, 2023

Celebrate summer with our sunset picnic spread – a gluten-free, dairy-free, and vegan delight designed for sunny afternoons or balmy nights.

Time: 30 minutes
Serves: 3-5

A sunset gathering is the essence of summer bliss, and what better way to celebrate the sunset season than with a Picnic Spread? Unlike our other recipes, this one will offer a scaffold of ideas & recipes of ours that we think make a nourishing spread of plant-powered delights perfect for any get-together. Our version is gluten-free, dairy-free, and vegan to cater to many dietary preferences and to leave you and your guests feeling their best after quality time and quality ingredients. Crafted with love, our scaffold empowers you to curate a board that nourishes the body during the social season!

Spread base:

Every good picnic spread starts with colour, this is where like a balanced meal, vegetables make the base of this spread. Carrots, baby cucumbers, radishes, capsicum, tomatoes, and snow peas are great ones for snacking and together create a colourful and fresh look for the spread. Aim for 3-4 different vegetables as your base with around a cup of each.

Make it fun with dips:

As much as we love our vegetables here at Sol Cleanse, we agree that they are better when made fun with a delicious selection of dips. Dips such as hummus can be surprisingly easy to make at home by combining a tin of chickpeas, with garlic, olive oil, tahini and lemon juice in a blender until smooth and full of flavour. Another easy crowd-pleaser is our Spring Pea Pesto which can be adapted to the nuts and herbs you have on hand.

Something crunchy & salty:

You can enlist the help of store-bought goodies for this part of the spread for those who do not have time to make their crackers and cheeses. To add some crunch and more vessels to dunk into the dips, crackers such as rice and seeded crackers are great options to keep the spread gluten-free. Creamy cashew cheeses are available from most health food shops that offer the same tang as cheese without dairy for those who are dairy-free and are a great source of probiotics for gut support.

A sweet treat to finish:

We haven't forgotten about those who love finishing a meal on a sweet note! Adding some fresh berries or grapes can hit the sweet spot whilst beautifully decorating the spread. For those who like their desserts a bit richer, sprinkling in some dark chocolate is always a good idea. Or for the perfect sweet and dark treat you can whip up our Chewy Cacao Tahini Fudge, for a sweet that’s also packed full of goodness.

Method

There is no method to this madness, simply organise your elements how you wish on a platter and serve. This is your time to express your creativity to make a labour of love that looks good enough to eat! For the ultimate picnic beverage serve with a Sol Cleanse green juice from our Goodness Greens Pack.