Health and Wellbeing

The Perfect Picnic - A new meaning to ‘eating out’!

The summer months provide us with the perfect excuse to venture away from the dinner table and dine ‘al fresco’. By simply choosing a pleasant,natural surrounding such as a lake, beach, park or garden, your meal can be transformed into a true dining delight.

Garden Grazing

Your own garden can offer the ideal location for eating outdoors - avoiding the need to travel whilst also providing access to the refrigeration facilities of your kitchen! The smell of a barbeque on a warm evening not only gets our mouths watering but is a sure sign that summer is finally upon us.

Why not spice up those typical barbeque foods by incorporating some dairy - which will also help you achieve your recommended dairy intake.

Remember, the Department of Health and Children recommend 3 portions of dairy everyday. During the teenage years (11-17 years), pregnancy (second half of pregnancy) and breastfeeding (first 6 months of lactation), calcium requirements increase. So, add a slice of cheese to your burger or sprinkle some grated cheese over a summer salad. Natural yogurt can also be used as part of a tasty salad dressing or dip.

Also, a fresh fruit salad drizzled with natural yogurt makes the perfect dessert or even a healthy snack. A glass of cold milk serves as the ideal thirst
quencher on a hot summer’s day.

The Perfect Picnic

For those of you who are slightly more adventurous and want to dine ‘alfresco’ further away from home, a picnic is perfect.

Getting the whole family involved - making sandwiches, filling flasks and packing the picnic basket - adds to the excitement of the day. Below are some
tips to help ensure you have both a satisfying and safe picnic:

• Ensure all foods and ingredients are within their ‘use by’ date.
  
• Use separate work surfaces and utensils when preparing cooked and raw foods.
  
• All food should be well covered using cling-film, air-tight containers or lunchboxes as appropriate. Remember to rinse out all flasks and containers that may have been in your storage cupboard throughout the winter months, prior to use.
  
• Store all perishable products in the fridge until your departure and transport them in a cooler bag containing ice packs.
  Plastic cups, paper plates and plastic cutlery are safer options as opposed to glass or delft.

Picnic Food Ideas

With the appropriate chilling precautions, dairy foods can be included among your picnic foods, providing an array of vitamins and minerals (including calcium, phosphorous and some of the B vitamins) to your ‘alfresco’ dining. Cheese salad sandwiches, fresh summer fruits such as strawberries, yogurt and fresh crusty breads are among some tasty picnic options. Always take care to store and transport foods appropriately. Dispose of any left-over perishable foods – remember if in doubt, throw it out!

Picnic Preparations

When it comes to preparing for a picnic, the food selection usually takes priority. However, if eating and spending time outdoors, there are other essential items that should be brought along to ensure a thoroughly enjoyable day:

• An old blanket (which you are prepared to get dirty!)
• Napkins/ hand wipes
• Suncream, sunglasses, sunhat
• A newspaper or a good book for a relaxing read
• ‘Picnic Fun’ essentials e.g. football, frisbee, skipping rope.

At the End of Those Summer Days

After your guests have left or the kids have gone to bed, why not relax with an assortment of Irish cheeses and crackers accompanied by a glass of
your favourite red wine.

Picnic Fun!

Both healthy eating and physical activity are essential for a healthy lifestyle. It is recommended that adults engage in at least 30 minutes of moderate physical activity most days, if not every day. Sixty minutes of moderate physical activity every day is recommended for children.

So while dining alfresco, why not incorporate a bit of physical activity! Some ideas for all the family include:

• Wheelbarrow race
• Sack race
• Three-legged race
• Egg and spoon race
• Treasure hunt
• Frisbee
• Football match
• Skipping rope
• Rollerblading
• Cycling

Did you know?

According to National Surveys, approximately one third of Irish children and teenagers do not consume enough calcium in their diet. Dairy foods provide essential vitamins and minerals such as calcium, phosphorous and some of the B vitamins.

NutriMyth of the month

Myth: A smoothie does not count as a portion of dairy

Truth: A portion of dairy is equal to ⅓ pint milk, a carton of yogurt or 1oz hard cheese. So if your smoothie is made using a carton of yogurt or 1/2 portion of milk plus 1/2 portion of yogurt, you can count it as a portion of dairy.

 

If you have any suggestions or ideas, we would be delighted to hear from you via email at feelinggood@ndc.ie or write to us at The National Dairy Council, 28 Westland Square, Dublin 2.

 

Don't miss our July edition Eating for the Elderly- available online from Monday 20th of July