Food miles from nowhere!
February 16, 2011 1:53 PM   Subscribe

Surprise food hamper. Help me fill it... and quick!

I am taking my sweetie away this weekend to a beautiful place in the country. It's self-catering with a fully-equipped kitchen but it's a long way from the nearest supermarket and when we are there it would be nice to relax without having to worry about having to go out and pick up food. So, what would you think would be a good idea for a food hamper to keep us going when we are there? I want to get nice things, but I don't want to forget the practical stuff either. I don't want to get too much stuff (as we both abhor waste) but want a little luxury too and don't want to skimp. We are away for 4 days and need breakfast, lunch and dinner!

It's going to be cold (Northern Europe) so warming stuff is nice and probably less salads more soup kinda thing. No allergies to speak of.

Anon as this is a big surprise, my SO knows my username and I don't want her to find out.

Go hive!
posted by anonymous to Food & Drink (13 answers total) 1 user marked this as a favorite
 
don't forget salt and pepper!
posted by raccoon409 at 1:56 PM on February 16, 2011 [2 favorites]


Cured meats, interesting cheeses, and pears/apples. Easy to slice up and serve, but also a little fancypants.
posted by phunniemee at 2:03 PM on February 16, 2011 [2 favorites]


good quality chocolate
posted by sockraticpielogue at 2:08 PM on February 16, 2011


You don't mention being vegetarian so I'll go for the meat eaters version.

Loose tea/teabags/coffee
Milk
Cream
Bottled water
Bread(s), pains au chocolat, croissants, pains aux raisins
Good chocolate
Wine, spirits if you drink them

Ingredients for soups, sandwiches, stir fries, breakfasts, etc.:
Potatoes
Carrots
Leeks
Pak choi (bok choi)
Spring onions (scallions)
Lettuce
Tomatoes
Mushrooms

Bacon
Sausages
Black/white pudding
Pack of good white fish, prawns, scallops, etc.
Couple of good steaks

Jars of antipasti (can bring them back unopened if not used)
Tins of Heinz cream of tomato soup [substitute your favourite] for when you don't feel like cooking

Have fun!
posted by ceri richard at 2:08 PM on February 16, 2011


some quick ideas:
- Make French Onion soup (or other hearty soup of choice) in advance and warm it up & serve with cheesy-toast and a good wine for dinner the night you show up- less work for you to do, and as romantic as you want it to be. Freeze the soup for ease of transport & use as icepacks for the rest of your food.
- bring eggs & bacon for breakfast as well as as stick of butter.
- bring enough of your beverage of choice to last the weekend (couple of bottles of wine, burbon/whiskey etc), but also bring a containor of juice/non alcoholic drink. (easy to forget!)
- good cut of meat/fish, and seasoning for it in a small plastic ziploc.
- salad stuff (have a lunch salad + leftover soup one day)
- vegetables/potatoes to roast, very low maintanance and warm and filling.
- bring heavy cream. a little in a sauce or in your scrambled eggs in the morning can make things extra awesome, particularly if you don't regularly cook with it.
- don't forget dessert! Fruit is good!

Basically make a rough meal plan, and stick to it. Try to get as much of the cooking done pre-trip (make soup, pre cut the salad etc) so you can just go "hm dinner, well lets just pull out this prepared bag of salad ingrediants, this unit of meat+ seasonings and this carb". It'll get all of the hassle out of the way before the trip, and you won't have to worry about any fussy prep work.

Do all the dishes and clean up as you go.
posted by larthegreat at 2:12 PM on February 16, 2011


Don't forget eggs. Everything from simple to elaborate can be done with eggs as a base.
posted by TooFewShoes at 2:13 PM on February 16, 2011


If you've good bread, then good jam / spreads like Nutella. Fancy tuna / herring.

Candles.
posted by taramosalata at 2:20 PM on February 16, 2011


I know these aren't heated, but I'd get yummy things you can feed to each other that require no preparation. This includes strawberries, cherry tomatoes, olives, fancy chocolate, roasted nuts, etc.

Don't forget tea, coffee, or hot chocolate.

I would bring a loaf or two of bread, as that covers a lot of bases.

Pasta with tomato and sausage (veggie, in my case) and spinach - don't forget the seasonings! Hearty and quick.

Have fun, lovebirds!
posted by Isingthebodyelectric at 2:23 PM on February 16, 2011


don't forget to bring a fat to cook with (olive oil, butter, whatever you like) and a sweetener for your hot drinks (sugar, honey, whatever). and salt and pepper.
posted by thinkingwoman at 3:49 PM on February 16, 2011 [1 favorite]


Brie, and delicious crusty bread!
posted by ErikaB at 6:29 PM on February 16, 2011


Salt, pepper, butter, sugar
risotto
one block good parmesan
several bottles of wine!
risotto
dried porcini
apples
bread, rolls, croissants
good quality aged cheddar cheese
smoked trout or salmon
tomatoes
fresh basil
cream cheese
pasta
red onions
sour cream
horseradish
lemon
chicken broth
stuff for salad
olive oil
balsamic vinegar
eggs

Would be my list.
posted by A Terrible Llama at 6:38 PM on February 16, 2011


Fancy crackers and a variety of individually wrapped small cheeses. Small jar(s) of pickles. A must.
posted by Taurid at 9:39 PM on February 16, 2011


I've been thinking about your question more and here's what I would do:

Whenever I go somewhere where I have to take my own food for more than one meal (rental cottage, camping) I plan out a menu.

I list what I want to make for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks for each day keeping in mind the activities I've got planned. For example if we're camping I know that day one needs a simple dinner because we'll be spending a lot of time setting up camp. If I have an activity planned that will take all day I know I need a good breakfast that morning and a simple lunch that can be packed and taken with us.

Then I make a shopping list for all the ingredients by listing everything that goes into the meal. I start my 'shopping' in my own cupboards to see what I already have. Then I make my list to take to the store. I also buy a bunch of those semi-disposable plastic containers. If my recipe calls for sugar I don't want to bring a whole canister, so I'll just scoop what I need into one of the containers.

This is the one time when I don't try for leftovers, so if your recipe says it makes 4 servings you might want to either cut it in half or look for something smaller.
posted by TooFewShoes at 6:43 AM on February 18, 2011 [1 favorite]


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