I have this little dream of taking my family on a picture perfect picnic luncheon – you know with a red and white checkered blanket; a woven basket filled to the brim with a delicious, indulgent feast; me in some stunning and yet casual ensemble perfect for the just slightly breezy, warm summer day we’ve chosen for our family outing. Yeah, it hasn’t happened yet. We don’t own or have any plans of owning a red and white checkered blanket or a woven basket. Usually our on-the-go lunches consists of a small assortment of leftovers or peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I never seem to dress in just the right outfit for the weather and of course our plans often get rained out. Such is life.

So when GoPicnic contacted us to review their line of non-perishable and ready-to-eat meals made of natural ingredients that require no preparation, refrigeration or fuss – I was eager to give them a try. Maybe having the food prep taken out of the equation would make my fantasy picnic a reality? They sent me an assortment of their meals which you can get for specialty diets like kosher, halal, gluten-free or vegetarian, never mind their already vast variety. Check out their website for descriptions of all the meals available.

I packed three boxes into a bag: the Aqua Munch for my three year old son, the Go Deli for my husband and the Go Primo for myself. Then we headed to our nearest park and attempted this picnicking thing one more time. Of course, it wasn’t a perfect trip – picnicking with a three year old and a two week old infant is probably never going to be a sure thing. Add to that the fact that the picnic table we chose was a bit lopsided (I really need to get a red and white checkered blanket!), the wind was a bit too rough and a couple of pesky bugs… But I packed my pessimism aside and dug into the feast provided by GoPicnic. Here’s a breakdown of our thoughts:

• I really liked how the boxes opened into little laptop style lunch trays (the kids meal even had little puzzles and games for my  son to play), but I think the inclusion of a little disposable placemat and / or trash bag would have been even better – something to easily sort the opened and unopened packages and provide a bit more of a workspace for prepping the lunches would have been just the ticket.
• My son and husband both had “sandwiches” made with crackers. My son’s was a Sungold Creamy Sunbutter and Bonne Maman Strawberry Preserves. Both were delicious – we are already a big fan of the Bonne Maman preserves but had never had Sunbutter before – we were very impressed except that the ingredients were a bit too runny for the crackers provided, making for awfully messy sandwiches that should not be trusted in the hands of a three year old.
• The same crackers, however, worked just fine in my husband’s Copper Cowbell Asiago Gourmet Cheese Spread and Old Wisconsin Beef Salami sandwich. I thought this was delicious – my husband was not as happy, but I think his Big Man Appetite was just unimpressed with the size of the “sandwiches” – the ingredients, in my opinion, were very tasty.
• My sandwich was more Bonne Maman Strawberry Preserves paired with Nutella Chocolate Hazelnut Spread on a Bauli Classic Plain Croissant. It was, in a word, heavenly. I mentally added Nutella to my grocery list as I ate my sandwich and we all agreed it was the best lunch in the group. I think those croissants should be included in EVERY box – it was delicious.
• Other foods we really loved were: the Mariani Ultimate Apricots, Brent & Sam’s Soft & Chewy Chocolate Chunk Cookie, Barry’s Bakery Cinnamon French Twist, and the Sweet Perry Orchards All-Natural Unsweetened Applesauce.
• Other complaints: When the wind picked up, we really wished the boxes included were a bit heavier. We also would have liked some plain napkins included in addition to the lemon scented wet wipes. The wipes were very much appreciated but when spills happened, it would have been nice to have both. And with three year olds – yeah, spills happen.
• The best thing though – was that we didn’t have to cook and we didn’t have to wash any dishes when we got home. It might not have been perfect, but it did get us outside and enjoying a fun new thing together. If it had been up to me to prepare that meal, we probably wouldn’t have gone out at all. And I really love that GoPicnic meals are made up of quality products that you’ll know and recognize from the store.

So, while these definitely didn’t give me that picture perfect picnicking experience (which I’m starting to think doesn’t exist), I enjoyed trying these GoPicnic meals and discovering some fun new foods. I think they would make a really fun school lunch or camping meal – something a bit classier and healthier than your average Lunchables. I also would have liked to have these boxes when I was out and about while pregnant – we’d often find ourselves far from home when my appetite flared – it would have been so convenient to have one or two of these packed away in my car.

Win it!

We’re giving away four (4) GoPicnic meals to five (5) lucky winners! Here’s how you can to enter to win:

1. Check out the GoPicnic website and tell us which four boxes you will choose if you win. This is mandatory – if not done, all other entries will be null and void.
2. For a second entry you can tweet about this giveaway. Need some tweet-spiration? “Five lucky winners will win a ready-to-eat picnic feast for four from GoPicnic.com @mommasreview http://www.mommasreview.com”
3. For a third entry, post about it on your blog and leave a comment here with the URL of your post.
4. For a final entry, subscribe to our RSS feed, leaving a comment here to tell us you’ve done so. We’ll be posting more giveaways on Momma’s Review soon so subscribing will be a great way for you to stay informed about all the great things you can win in the days and weeks to come.

This giveaway will close at 12:00 p.m. EST on August 19th 2009.