Evening picnic at the lake. And THANK YOU!

Thank you so very much for your comments with regard to my television debut,

also on Facebook and Instagram!

I’m a little…well, admittedly: I am totally overwhelmed/knocked over/surprised by your nice words.

I would never have expected this!

While it was being broadcast yesterday I wasn’t even sitting in front of the TV (because I seriously had forgotten about it!), but loaded my kids, lots of food and dishes into the car, rolled down the windows and turned up the volume of the radio to the max and drove with them to a lake, hair blowing in the wind and loudly howling singing along.

THIS is how summer feels, right?

In the evenings most sun lovers are already gone, the sinking sun magically turns on a soft, lovely light, the day’s heat is replaced by pleasant coolness and with your toes in the water everything instantly tastes double as delicious. You have to try it!

But in order to avoid having to spend too much time in the kitchen beforehand, I will tell you my quick and easy picnic recipes in a minute!

However, this highlight I cannot promise happening to everybody:

Late in the evening some guys turned up with their surfboards and practiced their stunts right in front of us.

And they were quite obviously delighted when I pulled ut my camera!

By the way, I wore a delicate summery dress with a necklace in a matching color: both absolutely represent summer for me!

The dress is perfect for everyday, as it is very easy-care and comfortable.

My dishes are a mix of flea market finds, older plates and some new additions: the white pieces with the black lace pattern are from the new Day Birger and Mikkelsen collection.

Such a nice mix of plain and playful!

I so love being spontaneous - and don’t want to spend hours preparing an evening picnic like this.
My secret is ready-made dough from the grocery store’s refrigerator section, which I fill with fresh ingredients.
It’s super fast and tastes delicious!

This time we brought along:

- pretzel balls: 5 minutes (recipe HERE), 

- home-made strawberry jam with sugar and pectin (such as Sure Jell), cooks for just 3 minutes and is immediately ready, and passion fruit jam,

- cheese-bacon sticks: about 10 minutes (recipe HERE)

- small sausages, and raw veggies such as tomatoes, cucumber etc.

- Strawberry-rhubarb crumble in a jar

(sorry, if the measurements are a little off – my weighing scales went belly up yesterday, and I poured things in just so. Which worked perfectly ;)).

For 4 small jars:

approx. ½ dry pint of strawberries
2 small stalks of rhubarb
½ cup Zucker, 
a little ground cinnamon, 
7 Tbsp. butter, 
½ cup plus 3 Tbsp. flour, 
2 Tbsp. old-fashioned rolled oats.

Wash and hull strawberries and rhubarb.
Quarter strawberries, cut rhubarb into small pieces.
Grease a heat-proof dish or small jars, add fruit in layers.

Make crumbles by hand with the softened butter, flour, oats, cinnamon and sugar and cover the fruit with a layer of crumbles, about 1/2”. 

Bake the whole thing in the preheated oven (400F) for about 30 minutes.

Shortly before serving it up top with a little crème fraiche and vanilla seeds.
(tastes wonderful with vanilla ice-cream when at home!)


- Towards the evening we also had lemon tea that I had sweetened with elderflower syrup.

Sources of supply:
dress: HERE
necklace: HERE
cup+bowl Day: HERE
Nicolas Vahe jam: HERE
everything at Villa Smilla

(by the way: there is still a small number of GHD-flat irons available at the special rate!)

small bowls white/dark blue pattern: Manjana Home
other dishes: flea market




By the way:
just get some baguette, cheese and melon, grab a cutting board and a knife – and off you go!
Works just as well!


Love,
Joanna
p.s. In case you’re wondering why Ben is so skinny:
we regularly feed him, honestly!
Every Wednesday!