Hearty, rustic stuff that isn't fussy about handling -,potato salad, mashed potatoes, bean-olive-quinoa salad, etc?

Are you serving the ribs cold? Not knowing the location of the picnic I'm not sure if there is a place to keep them warm. Will there be picnic tables available?

Potato salad is nice because it can be made ahead Corn bread or corn muffins.

johnliu, I was thinking of some kind of potato dish to serve alongside the ribs.

Teresa, we don't know the location of where we're going to have the picnic. It may be at one of my friend's home's (most likely Becky's) or somewhere out in the country.

Brad AKA Moonwolf

That would make all the difference in the menu. If the picnic is held at someone's house you will have access to applicances that can cook/reheat food. If you are out in the country and eating outdoors you will want foods that could be stored in a cooler and eaten cold.

That's why I asked.

Teresa

Brad I think ribs are a great choice for a picnic because you can hold them warm or hot for as long as you need and they'll stay good.

Bricks heated in the oven is a great heat source for turning a cooler into a warming box, so let us know if you need tips.

I'd test the sauce itself on a small scale to see if you like it and decide if/how you'd like to adjust.

Don't forget the mixed drinks!

My recommendations for a picnic: kir royale which is creme de cassis and champagne, or a black velvet which is Guiness stout and champagne separated in the style of a pousse-cafe. You will require champagne flutes, but they may be plastic if accompanied with several repentant Hail Marys.

I have an issue of Food & Wine laying around and I thumbed through it today and found a hard apple cider sangria. It sounded like it could be good with ribs.

I might add some club soda or Sprite.

Eileen

Here is a link that might be useful: Hard cider sangria.

Teresa, well, we'll be making the food at Becky's house, that's for certain.

foodonastump, I am happy to hear that because our one friend just LOVES ribs lol. Bricks heated in the oven sounds like a neat idea in case we decide to go out in the country for a picnic :-).

johnliu and barnmom, we'll most likely be making the sangria recipe I posted above, but without the brandy/cognac suggestion (might add triple sec instead). That hard cider sangria looks good though, barnmom!

Brad AKA Moonwolf

LOL, johnliu.

Brad, ribs sound delicious, it's one of my favorite things. Like FOAS, I've kept things hot with bricks or paving stones heated in the oven then wrapped in towels and put into the bottom of a cooler, you can put the pan of ribs right on top and they stay pretty warm. Just be careful not to heat them too hot, you don't want to burn yourself or melt the cooler, be sure to put a nice layer of towels on the bottom too.

Annie

Thank you, Annie!

Still no official side dishes or dessert, yet. I may try and post pictures if I remember to take my camera lol. I'll be sure and pass the idea along to my friends about the bricks/stones wrapped in towels and placing towels on the bottom .

Brad AKA Moonwolf

Ribs. Yum.

Beans and/or potato salad and/or coleslaw are the standards here.

I think you need chocolate! Cupcakes are great and a good one is Ina Garten's chocolate ganache cupcakes. I made them for a Cooking class I did today (on cooking with herbs) and added lavender. But they are good just as is and there's something fun about eating a cupcake!

Katiec, I have those dishes in mind, and I just thought of cucumber and onion salad today as a possibility as well :-).

Linderhof1208, I'm not a big fan of cupcakes, believe it or not. I was never much of a cake/cupcake person. I do like chocolate though, but not a chocolate fanatic. Brownies may do the trick. I know people make them all the time for picnics/barbecues/cook-outs.

Brad AKA Moonwolf

Brownies, cookies, bar cookies are all good choices. An all-American apple pie is quite satisfying too, but depending on the weather and such, fruit is always a good picnic dessert too. Something simple like watermelon, grapes and/or cantaloupe and maybe something traditionally sweet (cookies, brownies, etc). Fruit is refreshing after a good pigout on the heavier ribs and sides.

I'm a potato salad and coleslaw fan myself with ribs. If you had the spot to roast some corn on the cob, that's great too. A pasta salad or a bean salad could be a good accompaniment too. Wild rice salad or dressing is different and would accompany a picnic well.

Don't forget some wet wipes for cleaning hands and faces after diving into the ribs! And lots of napkins or paper towels, garbage bags and if it's at a park or something with a picnic table, bring a tablecloth of some kind. A tarp, shower curtain, drop cloth or most anything will keep it cleaner. Dollar stores have cheap tablecloths and a roll of gray gold (aka duct tape) keeps it from blowing away. Some basic seasonings if someone wants to doctor something up a bit more. You know the routine! :) And do yourself a favor, make a checklist! If I didn't use checklists I'd be in a heap 'o trouble! It's so satisfying to have even a "simple" event go off without a hitch. Forgetting the paper plates or something is a bummer.

And keep in mind ribs are pretty much interchangeable in a lot of recipes so if you see a deal on loin backs, baby backs or country style you can go that route. Although I enjoy gnawing meat off a bone, boneless country style are usually a better value (more meat for the money) and less mess. There's no waste to speak of so there's another option.

I have several recipes for simple BBQ sauces if you're interested. I'm not totally adverse to cracking open a bottle of Bullseye either for its convenience.

Are you bread fans? Some garlic bread goes great or some hearty dinner rolls sop up the sauce nicely too. Or some flatbread or tortillas for making wraps with some rib meat and slaw. Is Gram's Lemonade participating? That would go great IMO.

Keep in mind there's a couple ways to go at this so decide which is the "purpose" of the food. Is the food preparation sort of a main part of the activity, or is the food to augment a get-together, feed and satisfy people. And yes it can be both but my point is, if you're getting together to chat and such, keep the foods simple and make ahead even the day before. Salads, desserts, etc are all do-aheads. Then you have more time to kick back with your friends.

However, if you're getting together to enjoy the cooking part, that's a bit different.

I know you'll have a great time. Enjoy yourselves.

This post was edited by cynic on Sun, Apr 14, 13 at 2:23