My family has always been big on picnicking—whether on the living room floor in front of a fire in January , beside a stream in the Cascade Mountains or in a hollow between sand dunes within sight of the pyramids. There is something simultaneously exotic and familiar about a picnic, whatever the venue.

Above all, a picnic should not be ordinary, nor should it be an effort—at least not during the picnic itself. A little advance planning and work goes a long way toward keeping the picnic itself more joy than job but even a spur-of-the-moment picnic can be pure pleasure if you’re prepared. And although you can get really fancy in your choice of picnic baskets, a simple tote, stocked with basics and kept in your car trunk, can transform a wide place in the road into a natural banquet hall.

I keep all of these items in my picnic basket which I keep in the trunk of my car so I’m ready for a picnic at a moments notice.

The Compleat Picnic Basket
Salt and pepper shakers—essential at any meal
Can opener—not used often, but required when required
Cork screw—basic
Knife—something cheap (Ginzu-like), and make a scabbard from cardboard and tape
Cutting board—you don’t want that Ginzu knife touching your car’s hood
Plastic tarp—ground gets wet
Blanket—you’ve got to have a picnic blanket
Paper plates—use it and toss it, don’t drive around with dirty plates
Plastic utensils—see above
Plastic cups—glasses are nice for special occasions, but having plastic cups around is never a mistake
Paper napkins—see “Plastic cups” above and insert “napkins”
Wet naps—the greatest addition to picnicking since the basket
Zip-lock bags—always handy
Plastic grocery bags—picnic-sized garbage bags
Garbage bags—big garbage bags

After some 50+ years of picnicking I consider the above items essential. They’re not all needed every time, but they’re all needed eventually and they all fit into a basket, a canvas tote, or even a pillow case.