For informal, outdoor summer wedding celebrations, you can’t beat a picnic. This increasingly popular fresh and unfussy way of eating at a wedding is a cross between a sit down meal and a buffet. Each table or group has its own selection of wonderful handmade food for sharing, making the wedding picnic a really fun and sociable way to eat.
Arrange trestle tables in the shade, or do away with the tables altogether and lay out picnic rugs and piles of cushions for a really lazy summer vibe. String gauzy bunting, garlands and lanterns in the trees for a magical Midsummer-Night look, and use rustic crates, logs and bales to build outdoor furniture.
You can serve picnic food in big wicker hampers for your wedding guests to pick at or tuck into, and another benefit is that you can serve all your guests at the same time, with no one left waiting. It is wonderful to watch friends and family sharing, chatting, laughing and, most importantly, eating together. There is wonderful symbolism that the first meal really is eaten ‘as one’ with your nearest and dearest.
Our Top 10 Picnic Treats
- Herby scotch eggs
- Homemade pork and pancetta pies with a hidden quail’s egg
- Flattened roast chicken on a board
- Ham hock terrine with pineapple salsa
- Salmon with homemade hollandaise
- Individual asparagus and goats cheese tarts
- Truckle of local cheese with homemade chutney
- Kilner jars of colourful and crisp layered salad
- Rustic breads and salted butter
- Chilled English sparkling wine
Wedding picnic food is simple, fresh and delicious, and guaranteed to keep even the fussiest eaters happy!
Guest post by Karen Kemp of Kemp and Kemp Catering
Images from Kemp and Kemp Catering
