Picnic Sandwiches

Photo: flickr user evelynishere

Preparation

When your ingredients are wonderfully fresh and carefully selected, no complicated preparations are necessary to make an excellent meal. This is especially true during the summer, when the markets are bursting with fresh, ripe produce-what better way to celebrate all that freshness than with a succulent picnic sandwich?

Nobody likes a soggy sandwich; so follow these tips for our favorite portable edibles!

* Choose breads with a crust. Baguettes, sourdoughs, whole grain breads and hard rolls will stand up to sogginess longer than your average soft sandwich bread.

* Seal the bread's surface with a layer of cream cheese, butter or margarine.

For a super tasty sensation, slather the bread with mashed avocado mixed with lemon juice (to keep it from turning brown).

* Pack sog-inducing condiments like pickles and tomatoes separately. Add them to the sandwich just before eating.

* Sandwiches will last longer if packed in a cooler. If a cooler chest is not an option, consider making your sandwich with hard cheeses and dried meats.

Bring along some sealed individual packets of mayonnaise and mustard to spread on your sandwich just before eating.