Beach Food ideas

Spending the day at the beach tomorrow (usually go every weekend) and am getting sick of chips, sandwiches/rolls etc.

What do you normally take for beach picnics (cold food only please don't want to do a BBQ or anything)

bacon and egg pie - this can be made the night before.

roast a chicken the night before and take that (or sliced roast beef) - I'd also pre-cut a bunch of veggie sticks and make up a dip or two to take a long, some cheese & crackers plus pickles and fruit as well.

cold chicken drumsticks, wraps, cold meat and salads, a flask of hot water and packets of instant noodles, fresh fruit, definitely bacon and egg pie, or quiche, usually anything cold leftover in the fridge. I fill easy seal bags with water and freeze, great for keeping the food cold, and use for extradrinking water later.

I second a nice bacon and egg pie, perhaps a pasta salad or Scotch eggs.

Thanks for the feedback everyone some great ideas here will definitely use them for tomorrow starting with the bacon and egg pie idea! Mmmm.

Ploughmans Picnic Loaf

1 large fresh loaf unsliced pane de casa or similar like a thick vienna loaf perhaps.
soft butter, for spreading
150g sliced smoked ham
150g aged cheddar cheese
4 large pickled onions, sliced
2 ripe roma tomatoes
1 baby cos lettuce
60g black olives
1 sheet of butchers paper or wax paper
1 ball of kitchen twine

dressing:
2 tablespoons dijon mustard
2 boiled eggs, chopped
1/2 bunch parsley, chopped
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
salt and pepper, to taste

Using a bread knife cut a V in top of loaf on an angle and remove enough of the soft bread inside to leave a pocket for filling, reserve removed bread. Spread butter all over insides and then layer with ham, cheese, tomatoes, olives, pickled onions and the lettuce in the centre.

Drizzle some of the dressing as you go and season each layer with freshly ground black pepper.

Enclose top with removed bread and wrap the loaf in the kitchen paper and tie up with twine, like a piece of meat for roasting.

To make dressing, mix all ingredients together and season with salt and pepper.

To serve, take this on a picnic wrapped up ready to eat, then slice through the paper each slice will have a bit of everything in it, it eats well with salted potato chips.

Savoury Impossible Pie:
1/3 cup plain flour
1.5 cups milk
3 eggs
2 bacon rashers, chopped
3 Shallots, chopped
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
130g can corn kernels, rinsed, drained
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Fry bacon until browned, place bacon into a sieve and allow to drain

Oil shallow 23cm round flan dish. Whisk flour and milk in medium bowl until smooth; whisk in eggs.

Stir in remaining ingredients; pour mixture into prepared dish. Bake in moderately slow oven about 1 hour or until set.

For our picnic last weekend I roasted chicken pieces the night before and then raided the garden for salad stuff (cos, basil, baby spinach tomatoes cucumber) then took a jar of homemade mayonaise. Also a loaf of sourdough bread baked evening before. A few fruit and everyone was satisfied. Sometimes do a Jar of salsa as well.

Dont forget the salt and pepper and heaps of drinks.

I take bacon and egg pie, chicken nibbles, rice roll wraps, or aflan with cheese/eggs/finely sliced or grated veges and silverbeet.