Mother's Day Picnic

Mother's Day was last weekend here in Australia and this year I wanted to do something a little different.  As Autumn comes to an end and we move into our (relatively short) winter, I try to make the most of the last beautiful sunny days before it gets too chilly to sit out.  We are eating a lot of seafood at the moment so I planned a seafood only picnic that we could pack up and take into the National Park at Bobbin Head which is just a 15 minute drive from our house.

I wanted to keep things as simple but as nice as possible so I looked for simple ingredients that I could pre-prepare to keep any cooking to a minimum.  We packed a table and chairs along with plates, cutlery and of course, and ice bucket.  Here is the picnic I came up with.

Appetiser

Oysters with Shallot Vinegar

Yum!

Starter

Smoked Salmon and chive "cigars" with fish eggs and sesame seeds

These are so easy, take a slice of smoked salmon, slice in half and then roll up in the shape of cigar around a couple of chive stalks.  Place a couple of these on each plate, add a spoon of black fish eggs as garnish (be as cheffy as you like) and then sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Main Course

Seared Scallops on Fennel and Orange salad with grated lightly pickled beetroot

The salad is simply half a fennel sliced finally sliced on a mandolin and two oranges carefully segmented with a sharp knife to remove the fibrous insides.  For the beetroot, grate half a beetroot and pour over a tablespoon of cider vinegar.  Leave both for an hour or so whilst you drive to your picnic.

When you need to plate, sear the scallops on a spray of oil.  They will only take 2 minutes each side and when they are ready, plate them on a bed of the salad with the beetroot to one side.  Serve with a crisp white wine.

The great thing about this menu is that it was incredibly easy to prepare and produce.  The oysters take no preparation at all and the shallot vinegar only takes a few minutes.  The salmon can be prepared in advance and only needs assembling to get it served.  The only cooking required in this menu is the scallops and for this I brought our gas powered stove and a single non-stick frying pan.

In many respects, this picnic is easier to prepare than a sandwiches and crisp type of picnic, I know what I would prefer!