romantic anniversary dinner?!

You are so sweet. The whole idea of a picnic is romantic, and she probably won't care what you bring as long as it's edible. (Well, no hotdogs.)

I'd keep it simple by making up some of her favorite sandwiches, get some potato salad from the deli section of your supermarket, and save the big money for a spectacular small chocolate cake from the best bakery or custom baker in town. Make sure you have all necessary supplies like a plastic tablecloth or tarp to put on the ground, a few paper plates and napkins and some forks. Bring a liter of ginger ale & plastic glasses w/ stems (like wine or champagne glasses) so you can make toasts to your future. And don't forget the mushy card.

I'm adding on edit: The cake will need a knife to cut it. And pre-chill or even partly freeze the ginger ale depending on how long it will be out of the fridge before you drink it.

Cheese, fruit & in your case, sparkling cider are always good. Lugging a cooler really isn't romantic (even if you leave it in the car) so you want to stick with things that won't spoil quickly. Put everything in a basket of some sort, doesn't have to be a picnic basket, just find a nice looking bigger basket your mom might let you use or buy one for a few dollars.

Cheese cubes
Crackers
Fruit (strawberries, grapes, sliced apples sold in the packs so they don't turn brown)
Something chocolate--fresh baked cookies/brownies from the bakery would be nice
Sparkling cider

Don't forget the napkins and you can buy some plastic wine glasses that are perfect for this for a couple dollars apiece. Ask the bakery section of your grocery store for a couple of those plastic containers that they put stuff in and use them for everything, this will make it look nicer.

personal exp

Very Important: Avoid anything that will make you fart or burp (i.e.) chicken, beans, lentils and coke.

Unless you are good at cooking, I would buy most of the food premade from a deli.

(i.e.) cheese & biscuits, pork pies, antipasto (a selection of cured meats, cheeses, olives, relishes, artichokes), smoked salmon sandwiches, coleslaw, salad, and gourmet chocolate truffles to finish off.

Chocolate covered strawberries are romantic and taste great.

They are easy to make at home. But if you can’t be bothered, then many chocolate shops and delis sell them.

http://www.pastrywiz.com/dailyrecipes/re…

http://www.berries.com/

Cupcakes are also lovely for girls

Any sort of finger foods are good, as they are small, lightweight to carry, dainty and don’t make a mess.

Low alcoholic cider or non-alcoholic wines are both good choices for teenagers. You can even get non-alcoholic champagne presented in a proper champagne bottle which will add to the romance and sense of the occasion.

And as the above poster says, ginger ale served in proper champagne glasses (or plastic champagne picnic glasses) adds a nice touch.

Remember: you have to carry it all in, plus bring all the empties back out, plus carry a picnic blanket etc…, so keep it as simple and lightweight as possible.

I normally just take a really good quality crusty French bread stick with some gourmet organic camembert cheese and a bottle of wine (chardonnay). But that does not really seem suitable for a 17 year old.

And remember to take the essentials. Many times I have taken cheese but forgot a knife for cutting it, or taken a bottle of wine but forgotten the glasses, or even worse forgotten the ruddy corkscrew to open it.

Cold cut sandwhiches, a hersheys chocolate bar, whipped cream, strawberries & a simple red rose.