Picnic: Splendor on the Grass

A successful picnic menu requires food that looks terrific; food that can be set out on a table for impending attacks by out-of-shape swimmers, Frisbee show-offs and touch-football players; food that is more interesting than the same old vinaigrettes, potato salads, slaws, fried chicken and cold cuts that folks have been bringing to picnics all summer.

Of course, it’s hard to come up with an interesting picnic menu when the food can’t be served hot. Set down a plate of steaming hot food, and the aromas fill the room, excite the palate, enable us to better taste the flavors. Set down chilled or room-temperature food, and you have a pretty picture that’s tempting but not as tantalizing to all the senses.

And since hot dishes offer more variety than cold, it’s easy to understand why our summer picnic menus tend to tire toward the middle of summer. That’s when I start craving the bolder flavors of cold-weather food.

Lately, I’ve been hungry for paella, the rustic Spanish one-dish rice-and-seafood meal that is traditionally served hot. Rather than wait around for cool weather, I came up with a Picnic Paella, a sort of rice salad, thick with shrimp, chicken, clams and mussels. I undercooked the rice slightly so it wouldn’t mush. And I cooked some of the ingredients separately, then arranged them together on large platters when I set out the food.

The “paella” was pretty to look at--the saffron-yellow rice, black mussels and pink shrimp all contrasting--but the dish has no aroma when served chilled, so I made it strong with plenty of saffron and garlic.

In keeping with the Spanish theme, I also prepared chilled Gazpacho. I placed a large bowl of it in a larger bowl of ice so it stayed icy-refreshing. I served it in cups so it could be easily carried around. Its spicy, robust flavors contrasted nicely with the uncooked, cleansing freshness of the cucumber and tomato juice.

This hearty, delicious dish can be prepared the day before. Store each component--rice, chicken, seafood, sauce--in separate containers, and assemble the dish at the site of the picnic.

PICNIC PAELLA

1/2 cup olive oil

3 pounds chicken pieces

1 large onion, diced

3 sweet red peppers, cored, seeded and diced

4 cups chicken stock or canned low-sodium chicken broth

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 1/2 cups short-grain rice, such as arborio

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon white pepper

1/2 teaspoon saffron

3 pounds plum tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped, or 3 cups drained, canned, chopped plum tomatoes

12 large shrimp in shells

12 clams

12 mussels

1 cup white wine

Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in large oven-proof skillet over medium heat. Add chicken pieces, in batches if necessary, and brown on all sides. When brown, remove chicken and set aside. Add diced onion and peppers to skillet and cook 5 minutes, stirring.

In separate pan, bring chicken stock to boil.

Reduce heat under onion-pepper mixture to low and add garlic, rice, salt and white pepper. Stir until rice grains are coated with oil. Transfer contents of skillet to roasting pan. Add boiling stock, saffron and tomatoes. Arrange chicken pieces on top. Cover and roast at 350 degrees 25 minutes.

Place shrimp, clams and mussels in separate pan. Add wine and cook until mussel and clam shells open (discard those that do not open) and shrimp are cooked through. Using slotted spoon, transfer seafood to bowl and chill. Boil remaining liquid over medium-high heat until reduced by 1/3. Transfer to bowl and cool to room temperature. Transfer to blender or food processor. With motor running on medium speed, add remaining olive oil in slow, steady stream. Pour sauce into container and chill.

Remove roasting pan from oven. Arrange chicken on platter. Cover and refrigerate. Transfer rice to large bowl and chill.

To serve, pile rice in center of platter. Place chicken over rice and arrange shrimp and shellfish around perimeter. Drizzle with sauce and serve. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

GAZPACHO

3 to 4 tablespoons olive oil

1 small onion, chopped

2 tablespoons minced garlic

2 tablespoons Sherry vinegar

1 medium cucumber, peeled and seeded, cut into large chunks

3 cups tomato juice

2 or more dashes hot pepper sauce

1/4 cup mayonnaise

Salt

Freshly ground pepper

2 large sweet red peppers

1 loaf French bread, sliced into 8 (1-inch) thick rounds

Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring, until onion is tender, about 5 minutes.

Transfer mixture to blender or food processor. Add vinegar, cucumber, 1 cup tomato juice and hot pepper sauce and blend until smooth. Add mayonnaise and blend until incorporated. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Pour mixture into bowl along with remaining 2 cups tomato juice. Cover and refrigerate.

Roast peppers under broiler until skin is charred. Place peppers in paper or plastic food bag and seal. Set aside 10 to 15 minutes. Remove and discard skins and seeds. Chop peppers and add to chilling Gazpacho.

Brush rounds of bread with remaining olive oil and toast under broiler. Let cool. Serve soup well-chilled with toasted bread rounds. Makes 8 to 10 servings.