RECIPES:

Fried Chicken Strips

Mukimame Succotash

Easy Buttermilk Biscuits

Raspberry Cordial

Plum Bars

Many of my childhood memories are of concerts on the town green or at another public park. My mom was always finding one free concert or another to attend. We would help my parents lug folding chairs and blankets to an empty patch of grass, and pull out a small picnic of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with a cooler full of water.

In high school, the cool thing to do was take the “T,” Massachusetts’s train system, into the city with friends to attend a Boston Pops concert at the Hatch Shell on the Boston Esplanade. We’d bring sweatshirts and blankets and squeeze together amongst the crowd to hear the orchestra play John Williams’s compositions or “Stars and Stripes Forever.”

music to set the scene:

Listen to whatever music is featured at the concert, along with other pieces by the same composer, or any CD the orchestra has produced.

My sister and her children now have the good fortune of living near Tanglewood, the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra in Lenox, Massachusetts. All season long, the BSO performs outdoor concerts, and it’s tradition for many people to bring full gourmet, candlelit dinners.

Of course, I miss the wealth of outdoor musical performances in Massachusetts, but concerts on the green are easy enough to find in nearly every community. With a little research on the Internet, we found several in our own area. Our party was somewhere between the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and carrot sticks my mom packed for us and the candlelit dinners at Tanglewood.

I was inspired by the Anne of Green Gables series by Lucy Maude Montgomery. Anne is an orphan whose imagination, love of literature, and pursuit of education lead her through an extraordinary life. While planning for our concert on the green, we paid mind to Anne’s eagerness to delve into cultural experiences and how fine music enriches our lives. In respect to her, we made a kid-friendly Raspberry Cordial, certainly nothing a bosom friend would get drunk on. Before the concert, the children and I looked into what music would be performed and did some research on the composer. We sat on our blankets, enjoying our fried chicken and succotash. As we waited for the sun to go down and the performers to begin, we talked about the composer, his life, and his music.

To make this experience your own, you may choose to attend an outdoor play or even a storytelling festival instead of a concert. Read the play with the children before you go so they can follow along, or find out as much as you can about the actors. Don’t hesitate to be creative with the kind of food you bring, or how you set it up. Call the venue ahead of time to find out if outside food is allowed on the grounds.

variations on a theme:

Attend an outdoor theatrical production, and read the play beforehand. Or, attend the symphony at their usual indoor venue, and enjoy your picnic and discussion before or after the concert.

Fried Chicken Strips

My daughter is one of the pickiest eaters I know, and she loves this recipe. Serves 6

11⁄2 pounds skinless chicken breast tenders

11⁄2 cups buttermilk

1⁄4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons kosher salt

1⁄2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon paprika

Enough corn oil or vegetable oil to fill your skillet with 1 inch of oil

1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter

1. Place chicken in a glass or other nonreactive bowl with buttermilk and cayenne pepper. Stir to coat the chicken completely. Cover with plastic and allow to marinate for 6–8 hours, or up to 24 hours.
2. In a shallow dish, combine flour, salt, pepper, and paprika. Dip each piece of chicken in the flour mixture, then back into the buttermilk, and then dip in the flour mixture again for a final coating. Set on a baking sheet until ready to fry.
3. Pour oil in a large cast-iron skillet, and set over medium-high heat. Add butter, and let melt. When butter has completely melted and starts to make the oil cloudy with bubbles, drop a small errant piece of the flour/buttermilk coating into the hot oil. If it rises to the surface within a few seconds, the oil is ready for frying.
4. Place about 4 pieces of chicken in the oil, and fry for about 5 minutes per side, until the chicken is cooked through and the coating is golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Repeat with remaining chicken pieces.

Mukimame Succotash

Succotash is traditionally made with lima beans. Unfortunately, lima beans are one of the few things I don’t care for. Mukimame—edamame without their pods—turned out to be a perfect compromise. Serves 6

2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil

1 medium yellow onion, finely diced

1 orange bell pepper, finely diced

Pinch of cayenne pepper

2 cups frozen mukimame

2 cups frozen corn kernels

1⁄2 teaspoon kosher salt

Pinch of freshly ground black pepper

1. Heat oil in a large skillet set over medium-low heat. Add onions and sauté until nearly tender, about 8 minutes. Stir in bell pepper and cayenne, and cook until the pepper starts to soften, about 2 minutes more.
2. Stir in mukimame, corn, salt, and black pepper, and raise the heat to medium-high. Cook for 5–10 minutes more, stirring occasionally, until the corn and mukimame are cooked through and start to brown on the edges.

books to inspire:

Anne of Green Gables series, by L. M. Montgomery

The Philharmonic Gets Dressed, by Karla Kuskin

Can You Hear It? by William Lach

Easy Buttermilk Biscuits

These are the easiest biscuits I have ever made. You don’t need a mixer, and they take less than five minutes to throw together. They’re perfect for teaching someone their first lesson in baking. Makes 16 biscuits

2 cups flour, plus about 1⁄4 cup more for rolling

11⁄2 teaspoons baking powder

1⁄4 teaspoon baking soda

3⁄4 teaspoon kosher salt

1 stick (8 tablespoons) butter, cold but not frozen

3⁄4 cup buttermilk

1⁄4 cup heavy cream, plus more for brushing

1. Preheat oven to 450ºF. Place 2 cups flour in a large bowl, and whisk in baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add butter, and use your hands to rub the butter into small pieces and disperse throughout the flour mixture. When the mixture looks rough and butter is the size of corn flakes, stir in buttermilk and cream. The mixture will be very sticky.
2. Pour 1⁄4 cup flour onto a board, and dump dough onto the flour. Coat hands in flour and gently press the dough into a rectangle. Fold in half, then press into a rectangle again. Fold in half again, and press into a 12-inch square. Use a knife to cut dough into 16 squares.
3. Place biscuits on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush each biscuit with cream. Bake for 18–20 minutes, or until puffed and golden.

Raspberry Cordial

Of course, this isn’t real raspberry cordial, or even currant wine, for that matter. We wouldn’t want to lose any bosom friends over this, but it is a refreshing drink that will add some sparkle to your Concert on the Green party. Serves 4–6

1⁄2 can raspberry apple juice concentrate

3 cups cold water

1 cup frozen raspberries

1 cup sparkling apple cider

In a pitcher or carafe, combine raspberry apple juice concentrate and water. Stir in frozen raspberries and sparkling cider.

get creative:

Bring an iPod and speakers, and while you wait for the concert to begin, listen to a recording of music similar to what you’ll be hearing. Let the children identify each instrument as it plays.

Plum Bars

These cookie bars are my ultimate go-to recipe when I need a casual dessert. I’ve made them on my blog as Peach Cobbler Bars and Raspberry Jam Bars, but any way I serve them, they’re a hit with both kids and adults. The recipe is adapted from my friend Kathy’s recipe for Cherry Bars. Makes 20 bars

1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for buttering pan

1 cup granulated sugar, plus 3 tablespoons for sprinkling

2 eggs

1⁄2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1⁄2 teaspoon pure almond extract

11⁄2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1⁄2 teaspoon salt

4 firm but ripe plums

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Butter a 13 x 9-inch pan or a quarter sheet pan and set aside.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and 1 cup sugar until smooth and fluffy, about 2–3 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, incorporating well after each addition. Add vanilla and almond extracts. With the mixer on low, add flour and salt, and mix until just incorporated. Spread the mixture evenly into the prepared pan.
3. Slice plums in half and remove pits. Slice each half into 8 wedges. Arrange plum slices in rows on top of the batter, overlapping each slice as you go along. Sprinkle plums with remaining 3 tablespoons sugar.
4. Bake for 20–25 minutes, or until the edges of the bars are golden brown and the batter is cooked in the center. Allow to cool, and cut into 20 squares.