Margaret Skaritka of Tinley Park says she can't do without glazed pork chops. Gillespie, Zabicki and Skaritka called on favorite childhood memories as they entered -- and won -- the Family Reunion Fourth of July Picnic Contest, recently sponsored in Chicago by Oprah Winfrey-produced "The Color Purple" and launched in the Food section. Gillespie's Grandma Sally's Tuna Salad, a crowd pleaser at family beach picnics, was grand prize winner.
Zabicki's Red Rice -- created by her grandmother and acclaimed at family picnics in Kankakee Park -- and Skaritka's Glazed Pork Chops -- created by her stepfather and a hit at Polish Club picnics she attended as a child -- were runners-up. David's Cream Cheese Pound Cake, submitted by David Gerard Holsen of Milwaukee, and African Bean Balls, submitted by Jewel Bingham of Hazel Crest, also were runners-up. "Nothing in my childhood was better than spending a hot summer day on Chicago's South Side with my Grandmother Sally [Gillespie] and my menagerie of cousins, aunts, uncles and friends," Gillespie says.
"I don't recall my first trip to McDonald's or my first Big Mac, but I sure remember picnics with Grandma's tuna salad." "At times it would be too hot to cook and money was tight so my grandmother would whip up some tuna salad for a bunch. As children, we loved this dish, and my grandmother loved preparing it for us.
She would serve it on toasted bread with tomatoes and lettuce for a day at the beach; 63rd and Hayes was always a choice spot. If we were spending a night with her, it was a quick supper served to us kids on buttery Ritz crackers -- still my favorite. For adult dinner, she would scoop out tomatoes and add elbow macaroni to the tuna and create elegant meals.
And no family reunion or gathering was complete without her deviled eggs with tuna salad in the mixture," Gillespie says. Though family recipes are mainstays at traditional get-togethers, modern picnic enthusiasts realize that it's totally acceptable to put the emphasis on celebrating each other and having fun, even if that means substituting already-prepared foods and beverages to pack for picnics at the beach or park. Jason Handelman, prepared foods coordinator of Whole Foods, recommends building a picnic around proteins (already-prepared grilled salmon, chicken or flank steak) and adding gourmet twists (specialty mustard, fig spread and truffle oils) to customize prepared foods.
"Strive for something really fresh and seasonal," Handelman says. Create simple fruit parfaits by combining chopped up stone fruits (peaches, nectarines or plums) or berries with whipped cream. Combine already cut-up watermelon with feta and fresh basil or already cut-up cantaloupe with feta and mint.
Italian sodas and fortified waters are trendy beverages. When it comes to picnic wines, "stay light and crisp -- you don't want heavy," says Kevin Mohalley, president/wine director of Knightsbridge Wine Shoppe and Epicurean Centre in Northbrook. With roses the summer trend, he recommends Mas de Gourgonnier Les Baux-de-Provence 2006.
His picks for everyday wines to chill for picnics: a Besson Givry 2005 burgundy ($25) and a Mas de Gourgonnier Clos Paradis ($23). For picnickers preferring others make their food/wine decisions, Mohalley's staff will pack a basket of smoked salmon, smoked duck breast and legs, assorted cheeses and crackers, and red and white wines. "Just tell us your price range," he says.
Margaret Skaritka of Tinley Park says she can't do without glazed pork chops.
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