A Perfect Picnic

Wickerpedia

Myfanwy Alexander

We all have our own picnics of literature and personal legend and it is a truth universally acknowledged that any picnic created in adulthood can never come close to these early feasts. For many of us, Wind in the Willows’ Ratty’s perfect Edwardian basket of treasures remains the classic breathless list:

‘ ere’s cold chicken inside it,’ replied the Rat brie y; ‘coldtonguecoldhamcoldbeefpickledgherkinssalad frenchrollscresssandwichespottedmeatgingerbeerlemonadesodawater—’

Chicken featured in the rst great al fresco meals of my childhood: my brothers and their teenage friends would build a re of dri wood and would cook a substantial chicken over the glowing embers, a gritty, smoky delight which contravened all sensible rules on ‘cooking things thoroughly.’ We pretended to be Vikings, not a group known for their manners: the greasy hands and faces were all part of the fun.

Later, I realised the seductive potential of poussin, warm bread, olives and a bottle of white wine chilled in a stream: a little celebrated charm of the Welsh countryside is the fact that the thirsty wanderer is seldom more than a few yards away from moving water with booze-cooling potential. As a direct result of those romantic summer days, I soon had six young picnickers to provision and the rustic wicker gave way to a battery of unlovely but practical cool boxes. I realised that time and sanity could be saved by expecting the children to complete part of the process themselves: rather than staying up half the night lling rolls, they could select their own combinations of cooked meats, cheeses and salads.

I did not make our own pork pies for these outings but when our local butchers, such as Rikki Lloyd of Welshpool, create such excellent products, I felt no guilt. I am, by the way, a great fan of a good pork pie. To quote Marie Kondo, they ‘spark joy’ with their crispy and meaty textures, to ask nothing of the triumph of the jelly. But, personally, I consider that I need a month’s notice to make my own raised crust pie. is summer, I am facing the greatest picnic challenge of my life: Glyndebourne. I do love opera and an excuse to don a frock, but there is no doubt that the picnic is the pinnacle of the event, the apogee of al fresco dining, and squishy bread rolls with a bit of ham abby as a dog’s tongue will not cut the mustard, not even wholegrain Dijon mustard.

I am in a party including many epicurean Welsh exiles and so am determined to create a cornucopia of homeland treats. My favourite substantial summer salad is a stylish yet utterly simple mixture of broad beans, lightly smashed if you like, and quails’ eggs in a good vinaigrette. It doesn’t get soggy or bruised, unlike most operatic heroines, and I am lucky enough to have a brother-in-law with a farm in Tuscany making oil which is downright hearty. My next choice would be a carpaccio of smoked venison from the wonderful Beacons Farm Shop in Bwlch, in sherry vinegar, given a little crunch by a few toasted hazelnuts. When I was a guest at a Welsh Venison Centre wedding last summer, we were treated to delicious home produced meat on the most glorious day, and they should know about meat in season.

Every picnic needs nibbles and I’m opting for another Powys producer, Cradoc’s Biscuits. My favourite is the baked cocktail biscuit with pear and Earl Grey tea, which has a avour as understated yet redoubtable as a Jane Austen heroine, perfect for opera on a summer’s evening. e leek and Caerphilly cheese biscuits clamour to be included in my best of Welsh hamper: they sing a lovely duet with a salsa with warmth rather than re.

I wish I had the technology to nish my meal with a blackcurrant sorbet but I fear it would end up like a Ribena Slush Puppy, which doesn’t say Glyndebourne at all, so I’ll channel the best of the Welsh hills with whinberry summer puddings. A bottle of Rondo from Montgomery Vineyard will give the venison a run for its money without having us snooze through Act 2. Wish me well as I take on the gourmets on their home turf; I know Welsh food will hit the highest note.