subject: 4 Easy Tips to Spice Up Your Relationship [print this page] 4 Easy Tips to Spice Up Your Relationship
Pack a basket, grab your sweetheart and head for a romantic getaway. The setting can be as close as your high-rise rooftop or as distant as a country meadow. Leave the kidsand the hot dogsat home. It's time to catch a fresh breeze and titillate your taste buds with rich, subtly flavored morsels like Supreme Lobster Salad and Cherry-Chocolate Brownies.
Location, Location, Location
Picnics can take place at a jazz concert, on the lawn in the park or in a rowboat pulled ashore at the lake. Spots near watera brook, a river or even a fountainare idyllic for romance. A well-packed repast goes anywhere your imagination takes you.
Picnic-Perfect Menus
For love at first bite, select irresistible combinations of savory and sweet morsels. Think variety instead of volume. Round out small servings of such main dishes as lobster salad, chicken satay or saucy pasta with slices of avocado, cherry tomatoes, dips, vegetable chips, crackers, olives, pickles, cheeses and fresh and dried fruits. Include finger foods to nibble. You can enjoy food grilled or reheated on site, thanks to small cast-iron hibachis or disposable grills.
Practice Safe Sacks
The fun can turn sour if food-to-go is not handled and transported with care. Make sure your storage containers are secure and suited to your food. A beautiful new assortment of bowls, boxes and insulated bags is on the market. Mayonnaise is not, as commonly thought, a culprit in good food gone bad. The acidity of commercial mayo can actually help ward off microbes. Keeping cold foods cold and hot foods hot is critical. Use the following precautions to avoid the spread of harmful bacteria: Season foods with flavored vinegars, lemon or lime juice and salt. Keep cold foods below 40F with mini-coolers and cold packs. Chill food thoroughly in the refrigerator before packing in insulated containers. Transport hot foods in wide-mouthed thermoses to maintain a safe temp of at least 140F Avoid placing hot and cold containers next to each other. Take along disposable wipes or damp washcloths tucked into zip-style storage bags. To avoid bugging out, light citronelia candles.
The End of the Affair
Dessert opens a door to fantasy. Fruit tarts, mini-pies and cookies are sized just right for picnics. Chewy Cherry-Chocolate Brownies go with everything. Store-bought gourmet cookies like Almondina or your bakeshop favorite marry well with fresh fruits. Strawberries, cherries, papaya or other ripe juicy fruits satisfy that natural craving for sweetness. Champagne or a sweet dessert wine such as Sauterne, cream sherry or port finishes a sumptuous banquet with elegance.
Copyright 2011 Danielle Wise All rights reserved. You are free to use this article in part or full provided you include the author bio and a live website link.
