beach fare

Its summertime here in Australia and for most of us that means sunny days at the beach. My family and I are lucky enough to live a short stroll to our favorite patch of sand and sea. These school holidays we have spent every possible moment swimming, building sandcastles, playing beach cricket, stretching out on beach towels and talking with friends. Of course packing a delicious, nourishing picnic is essential as packing the sunscreen and hats.

When I've looked around this summer at what others are bringing to the beach to eat (I'm always curious!) much of it is processed and packaged foods - chips, savoury biscuits, pretzels, muesli bars. And then when the sun starts to lower in the sky signalling dinnertime, parcels of fish and chips, pizza or a bbq of sausages served in white bread with tomato sauce seem to be the popular choices. I write this as curious observation not as a judgement about what other people eat, we've eaten fish and chips on the beach too this summer but looking at things from a social health point of view the majority of people living in Australia and many other developed countries would benefit from eating more fresh fruit and vegetables.

So I thought I'd write this post and invite you to share what you like to take to the beach for snacks or meals.

For snacks my staples are fresh fruit and rice crackers with home made dips, sometimes some veggie sticks and cherry tomatoes from the garden.

For dinner, pesto pasta salad, homemade nori rolls or flat bread wraps with avocado, fetta or goats cheese and salad with roast chicken or boiled eggs.

Jay tells me, "I love taking a quiche, tart or pie to the beach/river or a whole lot of delicious things to wrap: roasted veggies, haloumi, feta, greens, chilli, caramelised onions. Yum! And fruit for dessert.

We always have fruit and nuts on hand for snacks."

And now its over to you, what ideas do you have for beach snacks and meals?