From the New York Times
There is something both innocent and exciting about a picnic, even if you are only packing a few things at the last minute and heading down the street to the park. It may be nothing fancier than bologna or tuna salad on white bread, but you’re still likely to have a good time, which is probably why many of us remain devoted to the same picnic foods we’ve eaten all our lives.
But at some point, you may get the urge to vary the menu a bit. With that in mind, I’d like to make a few — or, actually, 101 — suggestions, ranging from snacks to dessert. With a little shopping, a little effort, and 20 minutes or less for assembly, you can create the kind of carry-out food that will put the local prepared food shops to shame while saving you a small fortune. No matter how faithful you are to your old favorites, I’ll bet you will find something intriguing here.
In the beautiful economy of the forest – or the urban backyard garden
– leaves are nature's brilliant cookware. Banana leaves can be cut
down to make plates or unfurled into wrappers perfect for steaming fish
on a low-slung grill. Fig trees and grapevines yield leaves the exact
size for enclosing, then grilling, a cube of feta, a recumbent sardine
or a mint-studded lamb meatball.
People who love barbecue really love barbecue, and will go
to great lengths to find the perfect ribs. I’m one of those, so I was
thrilled to be invited to judge The Best in the 
At my local farmers' market this past week, I found some thick, hefty ears of corn that had been growing all summer with swollen kernels to match. They reminded me of the juicy ears of corn we had used at Tante Marie's Cooking School in San Francisco when we made a wonderful corn soup with a fresh tomato salsa. As soon as I saw those ears of corn I knew I would make that soup as soon as I got home.