27 Healthy Picnic Sandwich Recipes to Explore

Healthy picnic sandwich recipes from Grandma's era bring wholesome goodness to your outdoor adventures. These time-tested favorites combine fresh ingredients with classic preparation methods to create memorable meals perfect for any occasion.

From creamy cheese combinations to savory meat selections, these 27 authentic sandwich recipes will transform your picnic basket into a treasure chest of delicious, nutritious options that family and friends will absolutely love.

Healthy Picnic Sandwich Recipes: 27 Time-Tested Favorites

One Hundred Picnic Suggestions (1915)

Cheese-Based Sandwiches

Cottage Cheese and Roasted Peanut Sandwich

Soften cottage cheese, or cream cheese, with sweet cream, season with salt and paprika, and add an equal amount of roasted and salted peanuts minced fine. Spread on slices of entire-wheat (whole-wheat) bread that have been trimmed and spread with creamed butter, wrap in waxed paper.

Zesty Cheese and Chili Sandwich

Mix 1/2 pound of grated American dairy cheese, slightly warmed, with 1/4 cup of chili sauce, add 1 tablespoon melted butter, 1 teaspoon Worcestershire, and plenty of paprika to flavor. Mustard may also be added to this healthy picnic sandwich recipe, if liked.

Spread on slices of buttered white bread, cover with watercress, and again with the bread, trim free from crusts, and wrap in waxed paper.

Nutty Pecan-Cheese Sandwich

Cream 1/2 cup of butter, add 1 cup of grated American cheese and 1/2 cup of pecan or walnut meats minced fine. Dust with salt and paprika and spread on slices of graham or entire wheat bread. Press one upon the other and wrap in waxed paper.

Cheese and Pimento Sandwich

Cream butter, add an equal amount of grated English dairy cheese and chopped pimento. Season with salt and cayenne, and spread on slices of white bread. Put them together and wrap in waxed paper.

Tropical Pineapple-Cheese Sandwich

For this deliciously healthy picnic sandwich recipe, mix equal amounts of shredded pineapple, cream cheese, and pimento puree. Season with salt, cayenne, and curry powder and soften with creamed butter. Spread on slices of thinly cut white bread, press each two slices together, trim, and wrap in waxed paper.

Golden Egg and Cheese Sauce Sandwich

Melt 3 tablespoons butter slowly, add 4 tablespoons flour, cook until well blended but not oily, add 1 cup of rich milk, a little salt and pepper, 1/2 teaspoon each of mustard and Worcestershire, and 1 cup of grated cheese. When cheese is melted add 1 beaten yolk mixed with 1/4 cup of thick cream.

Cool slightly and spread on buttered white bread slices, cover with chopped hard-boiled eggs, dust with paprika, and cover with another slice of the bread. Trim, press together, and wrap each one separately in waxed paper.

Meat-Based Sandwiches

Prime Roast Beef or Beefsteak Sandwich

Cover slices of white bread spread with creamed butter, with thin slices of cold roast beef or broiled beefsteak cut across the grain, spread the beef with a layer of horseradish mixed with a little chili sauce, cover with the buttered bread, and trim them free from crust.

Brown or graham bread may be used for the upper slice. The beef may be minced, if desired, and grated onion with salt, celery salt, and paprika used instead of the chili sauce.

Ham Sandwiches a la Tartar

Add to 1/2 cup of mayonnaise or boiled dressing 1 tablespoon of tarragon vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon mustard, and 1 tablespoon each of minced parsley, capers, gherkins, olives, and chives or onion, and 2 tablespoons of chopped fresh tomato, squeezed dry. Add finely minced ham and spread on buttered bread.

Cover with nasturtium blossoms or watercress, cover with the bread, and wrap in waxed paper.

Chicken and Celery Crunch Sandwich

Mince chicken rather fine and add half the amount of minced celery or ham or tongue, or use all chicken. Add a few pimolas minced fine, and moisten well with thick mayonnaise. Spread white bread with creamed butter, then with the mixture, cover with more of the bread, trim, and wrap in waxed paper.

When making mayonnaise for sandwiches use twice the number of eggs to the usual amount of oil. To 3/4 cup of oil use 2 egg yolks. This makes the dressing very stiff, as it should be for sandwich filling.

Tasty Liver and Golden Egg Sandwich

Boil calf's liver until tender, or well-cooked sauteed liver may be used. Trim well and mince fine. Add a third of the amount of hard-boiled eggs, also chopped fine.

Season well with salt, pepper, and paprika, and soften with creamed butter. Minced green peppers and pimento, or olives may be added, if at hand. Spread on slices of buttered white bread and wrap in waxed paper.

Classic Creamy Chicken Sandwich

For this healthy picnic sandwich recipe, melt slowly 3 tablespoons butter, add 3 tablespoons of flour, and when well blended add 1 cup of thin cream that has been steeped an hour in a double boiler with a seasoning of onion, parsley, celery, and a small piece of mace, and strained.

Cook until thick, cool, and add 1 cup of minced chicken, a few finely minced pimolas or blanched almonds.

Season mixture with cayenne or Tabasco sauce, and spread very thick on buttered bread. Cover each slice with another slice of buttered bread, trim, and wrap separately in waxed paper.

Country Ham and Chicken Duo Sandwich

Use one part of minced boiled ham to two parts chicken also minced fine. Add Russian dressing, and spread on buttered white bread. Cover with the buttered bread, trim into uniform shapes, wrap each one in waxed paper.

Savory Chicken Liver Sandwich

Slightly brown in butter 2 slices of onion, 3 sprigs of parsley, and a strip of green pepper. Brown the chicken livers in this and cover with chicken stock. Simmer slowly until the livers are tender.

Trim them, cut in small pieces, and press them through a coarse sieve. Season with salt, paprika, a very little mustard, and a little curry powder, or a few drops of onion juice.

Add a few minced pimolas or olives, if at hand, and spread between slices of buttered brown or entire-wheat bread. Wrap in waxed paper.

Chicken and Salty Nut Sandwich

For this healthy picnic sandwich recipe, add to minced chicken the same amount of minced nuts, moisten with cream, season well with salt and paprika, and spread between slices of entire-wheat bread spread with creamed butter, and serve with a salad. Salted almonds or pecans may be used, also filberts or walnuts.

Classic Corned Beef Sandwich

Mince boiled corned beef, moisten with tomato catsup, chili sauce, or made mustard, and spread on Graham or whole-wheat bread slices well covered with creamed butter. Creaming the butter is better than melting it, as it spreads more easily. Wrap the sandwiches in waxed paper.

Vegetable-Based Sandwiches

Garden-Fresh Cucumber-Herb Sandwich

Cover with cold water 1 small onion, 1 green pepper, and 2 tablespoons of parsley, all minced fine, boil until tender, drain and mash, and add to the mashed yolks of 3 hard-boiled eggs. Soften with creamed butter, add a very little tarragon vinegar, and spread on thin slices of white bread.

Cover with very thin slices of cucumber that have laid in French dressing an hour or more, cover with the bread, and wrap in waxed paper.

Broiled Green Pepper Sandwich

Broil or saute in butter green peppers cut in strips and scraped free from membranes and seeds, dust with salt and spread them well with butter, and lay the peppers, while hot, between slices of buttered white bread. When cold wrap them in waxed paper and serve with cold meat.

Rainbow Pepper and Olive Sandwich

Cream 1/4 cup of butter, add 1 finely minced green pepper that has been parboiled 5 minutes, 1 small sweet red pepper, or use the canned pimento, also minced, 2 tablespoons of minced olives and 1 teaspoon minced chives or onion.

Season with salt and paprika, and add a few drops of tarragon or plain vinegar. Serve with cold meat or with baked beans.

Seafood Sandwiches

Anchovy and Egg Spread Sandwich

This healthy picnic sandwich recipe is perfect for anchovy lovers. Mix anchovy paste with the yolks of hard-boiled eggs, moisten with thick cream, season with cayenne, and spread between slices of white bread that have been spread with creamed butter.

Trim the slices into uniform shape, free from crust. Lay in a pile and wrap them in waxed paper.

Ocean Crab or Lobster With Pimento Sandwich

To flake canned or fresh crab meat or lobster, add one-fourth the amount of pimento puree (pimento or sweet red peppers pressed through a sieve). Add mayonnaise and spread between buttered white-bread slices. Paprika and mustard may be added to suit taste. Wrap in waxed paper.

Sardine-Caper Sandwich With Tartar Sauce

Toast lightly thin slices of well-trimmed white bread, when cold spread with tartar sauce, cover with skinned and boned sardines, sprinkle with minced capers, or watercress, and cover with slices of the toast spread with creamed butter. Wrap separately in waxed paper.

Savory Seafood Sandwich

For this savory picnic sandwich recipe, mix equal amounts of minced chicken livers and lobster or shrimps, season with onion juice or grated onion, and pimento, add salt and mix with mayonnaise and spread on buttered white bread. Cover with slices of whole-wheat bread also buttered, press and trim, and wrap in waxed paper.

Crab Meat and Cheese Sandwich

For this healthy seafood-themed picnic sandwich recipe, cream 1/4 cup of butter, add same amount of grated cheese and spread on white bread slices, dust well with paprika and cover with slivers of crab meat marinated in French dressing.

Cover with the buttered bread, trim, and press together, and wrap in waxed paper. Lobster may be used instead of the crab meat, and canned lobster, or crab meat may be used.

Tuna Fish Caper Delight Sandwich

To 1 cup of flaked (canned) tuna fish add 2 tablespoons of creamed butter, 1 teaspoon tarragon vinegar, 1/4 teaspoon of paprika, and 1 tablespoon of minced capers.

Spread between buttered slices of white bread. Cooked dressing or mayonnaise may be used instead of the creamed butter if the sandwiches are not to be served with salad. Wrap in waxed paper.

Specialty Sandwiches

Triple Decker Sandwich Cake Surprise

For this satisfyingly healthy picnic sandwich recipe, cream 1/4 cup of butter, add a tablespoon French mustard, 1/2 teaspoon of Kitchen Bouquet®, and a little paprika and celery salt.

Spread mixture on thin slices of white bread cut from a thick loaf, cover with a slice of whole-wheat bread, also buttered, spread on this a layer of chopped hard-boiled eggs mixed with minced pickle and capers, and a little anchovy paste, cover with another slice of white bread, wrap in cloth, and press under a weight for an hour.

Trim free from crusts and cut through the three layers of bread in thin slices. This may be taken to the picnic before cutting, if desired.

Peanut Butter Olive Sandwich

Add a few minced olives or pimolas to peanut butter, or mashed sardines may be used with the peanut butter. Sprinkle with lemon juice, dust with paprika, and spread on slices of buttered white bread, using creamed butter. Wrap in waxed paper.

Nutty Raisin Bread Sandwich

Who doesn't like raisin bread? For this healthy picnic sandwich recipe, use either whole-wheat or white bread in which seeded and plumped raisins are worked into the dough before the last raising, or use store-bought raisin bread.

Cut the bread as thin as possible (it cannot be cut as thin as white bread because of the raisins), spread it with creamed butter, dust with finely ground nuts, cover with the buttered bread, trim, and wrap in waxed paper. This may be eaten with salad.

Picnic Perfect Sandwiches: Your Guide to Success

These healthy picnic sandwich recipes represent the best of traditional home cooking. Each recipe carries the wisdom of generations, using simple, wholesome ingredients to create unforgettable flavors.

Whether you choose the protein-rich Chicken & Ham Sandwich or the refreshing Classic Cucumber option, these authentic recipes will elevate your picnic experience. Remember to wrap your sandwiches carefully as suggested to maintain freshness. Happy picnicking!