April is the first full month of spring, which means warmer weather and fresh, local produce are just weeks away. April 23rd marks National Picnic Day and there’s no better reason to get outside for an afternoon, even if it’s in your own backyard. Celebrate the season with these healthy picnic dessert ideas, which can easily be multiplied to treat a crowd of family or friends.
- Fruit Salad: This classic picnic dessert is as healthy as it gets. You can make it more fun by threading your favorites onto kabobs. Or, upgrade the traditional mix with fresh mint, honey-lime dressing, avocados, grilled fruits, dark chocolate or tropical fruits.
- Grilled Fruit: Grilling fresh fruits adds smoky flavor and caramelizes the fruits’ natural sugar. Grilled peaches with balsamic glaze are a go-to picnic dessert. We also love pineapple, apples and pears.
- Fruit Pizza: For a kid-centered picnic, fruit pizza is a great choice. They’ll love layering thinly-sliced fruit over the crust and cream cheese in fun rainbow patterns.
- Crumble Bars: A layer of slightly-sweetened fruit sandwiched between an oat-based crust is both healthy and satisfying. Blueberries and apples are both delicious fillings. The ability to cut a sheet of these bars into portable bites after baking makes them excellent for picnics at the park.
- Italian Ice: Almost any combination of fresh fruit and herbs, with just a touch of sugar or honey, makes a refreshing picnic dessert. Try melon and mint, berries with rosemary or citrus with basil. For a dessert that doesn’t require dishes, turn your favorite Italian ice combination into ice pops.
- Peaches and Cream: Fresh whipped cream, elevated with honey, cinnamon, lemon, brown sugar or chocolate, pairs perfectly over ripe fruit. Peaches and cream are the most classic choice. Strawberries are another popular (and delicious) option.
- Sorbet: Almost any fruit can become a sweet sorbet perfect for a picnic. Mango, melon, berries, peaches and citrus fruit are blended with a simple syrup before freezing. It’s that simple!
