Enjoy the Outdoors by Having a Picnic On A Sunny Day

For many of us, summer would not be complete without the enjoyment of a laid-back picnic on a warm, sunny day, out in the midst of nature's beauty. Be it a large family gathering, or an intimate affair for two, picnics have long been a favored.

Although people have long eaten meals outdoors, the term 'picnic' is from the French word piquer, meaning "to pick" at food. During the late 17th century, with the increased popularity of potluck style parties, the word was paired with nique, which refers to something small. Eventually, the term was reduced from piquer-nique to simply pique-nique.

Although the name for the small potluck meal was born in France, the craze for eating it outdoors first took off in Britain. In London in the early 1800s, the pursuit of picnics led to the formation of the Picnic Society. Members met regularly and each contributed some food.

The society died out by the mid-1800s, but picnics continued to rise in popularity. By the time, however, the French custom of having every guest bring a dish had become passe'. Instead, the host provided all the food and drink. The host would choose a location, often in a local park or forest, or on the rolling hills of their own estate property.

From there, the host's servants would take over, setting up the area with blankets and chairs for guests to relax on, bringing out all the utensils and dishes, preparing and serving the food and cleaning up.

If the picnic site was not within close walking distance, the goods and supplies were loaded into baskets, put into carriages and transported by the servants. And, as the railway industry grew, so too did picnics, as picnickers could pack up and travel to outlying countryside locales.

Despite being held outdoors, the Victorian-age picnic was a lavish and fashionable affair. Unlike today's shorts-and-sandals, sandwiches-and-burgers-style picnics, guests came attired in their best outfits and were served full, sumptuous meals with the finest china, silver and crystal.

A typical picnic offered a range of meats, vegetables and salads, and sometimes seafood. Pies and pastries, fresh fruits and of course wine and champagne were also served, as well as hot tea, which was made with freshly boiled water from a portable kerosene burner.

In 1869, a proper picnic would of included 35 different dishes. To feed a group of 40 guests, the host would need to have on hand a joint of cold roast beef, a joint of cold boiled beef, two rigs of lamb, two shoulders of lamb, four roast fowls, two roast ducks, one ham, one tongue, two veal and ham pies, two pigeon pies, six medium lobsters, one piece of collard calf's head, 18 lettuces, six baskets of salad, six cucumbers, stewed fruit, three or four dozen plain pastry biscuits to eat with the stewed fruit, two dozen fruit turnovers, four dozen cheesecakes, two puddings in moulds, two blancmanges in moulds, a few jam puffs, a tin of mixed biscuits and half of cheeses and fresh fruit.

Etiquette manuals of the time declared that picnic sites should include shady areas, as ladies could not be expected to hold their parasols while eating. The site should also not be too high as the alarm the ladies. It was up to the gentlemen to provide the entertainment, often by playing musical instruments such as the coronet. Recreational activities included croquet, flower collecting and sketching.

Over in North America, it was not uncommon for even those without servants to eat outdoors. Of course, those outdoor meals were much more casual, but following the lead of the Victorian-style picnics, specially arranged picnics did take place in North America by oceans, lakes, creeks, gardens and parks. Though not as formal, they were still considered special events.

As food preparation and storage methods evolved during the 20th century, so too did picnics. Picnic baskets have remained common, but china has been replace with paper plates, and plastic has become the material of choice for cups and silverware. There are coolers, airtight containers and plastic food bags and wrap, thermoses, paper towels and paper napkins.

We often drive in our cars to get to picnic spots in places like parks and conservation areas, and the barbecue is often the centerpiece of a picnic, with burgers, hot dogs and chicken cooked on the spot.

Picnics are not quite the fancy, fashionable events they were in the past, and in comparison to the Victorian era, they are not enjoyed as often. Some will partake in a picnic only once a year. But there are still some of us who garner great pleasure from simply taking our peanut butter sandwich, juice bottle and paper napkin out onto the back lawn to happily munch and sip away.

As long as there is warm weather and sunshine, there will always be picnics.