Memorial Day Picnic in the Arboretum

Perfect weather for Memorial Day- not too hot (around 75 degrees) and not too windy. It didn't take us long to find a nice secluded area in the Arboretum to lay out our blankets and start mowing down on some tasty snacks and refreshing drinks. Vbar made a delicious guacamole and brought along some salsa and tortilla chips. I brought some leftover pizza, baguette and...

Tuna and White Bean Salad
(this is one of my favs because it doesn't use mayo!)

Ingredients:
1 15oz can of White Beans (drained and rinsed)
2 6oz cans of Tuna, drained
1 large tomato- seeded and diced
1/4 C finely diced red onion
1 large garlic clove- put through a garlic press
Juice of 2 lemons
2 tsp Dijon Mustard
1/4 C olive oil
Fresh chopped Basil
Salt and Pepper to taste

-Toss beans, tuna, tomatoes and onions in a mixing bowl
-In a measuring cup whisk together lemon juice, mustard, garlic, s&p
-Gradually whisk in the olive oil and pour over the tuna and bean mixture and add freshly chopped basil

And to wash it all down we sipped on some of these:
Clean Out your Booze Cupboard Cocktail
This recipe varies from household to household depending on what's hiding out in the depths of your liquor cabinet or freezer. The only ingredient that is common amongst these cocktails is a Massachusetts Law that Prohibits the Sale of alcohol on a Holiday (how do we all still forget about this!)- Otherwise you would be sipping on the cocktail of your choice rather than a cocktail of desperation. The liquor supplies in my nest were all dried up, but thankfully Carolina Place had some surprise goodins on reserve and VBar threw together a refreshing cocktail from her eclectic array of leftover booze. I do not have the exact measurements because the cocktails were already made by the time i got there (i'm guessing all of the bottles were more than halfway depleted) but I do know the ingredients: Svedka Vodka, Peach Scnhapps, White Wine, lemonade, lime slices- topped off with seltzer.

The real Hero of this picnic was Matt Studner, who was on his A game and purchased a 12 pack of Coronoa and bottle of wine the night before- thanks Matt, you really saved the day!