Potluck dinner Saturday, April 18

[Golden Eagle]

This Saturday April 18 I am having a Potluck and have no ideal what to take. I was hoping that someone could gave me some help on this?

 

[msmofet]

This Saturday April 18 I am having a Potluck and have no ideal what to take. I was hoping that someone could gave me some help on this?

can it be anything? or have you been assigned a category ie appy or dessert etc?

 

[Golden Eagle]

It can be anything

 

[TheMusicalFruit]

Last night I used a leftover ham bone (from Easter) to make some ham and bean soup. It's still cold around here so it was delicious and warmed us all right up.

Just an idea...

 

[msmofet]

It can be anything

how about an appy/side dish:


Stuffed Mushrooms

large stuffing mushrooms - cleaned, stems removed and chopped fine,
set caps aside for stuffing
Shiitake mushrooms - stems discarded - caps chopped fine
Oyster mushrooms - cleaned and chopped fine
Crimini mushrooms - cleaned and chopped fine
Baby Bella mushrooms - cleaned chopped fine
Small white button mushrooms - cleaned chopped fine
Dried porcini mushrooms - soak in warm water to plump, chop fine, save liquid
Onion chopped fine
Fresh garlic chopped fine
Fresh oregano chopped fine
Fresh basil chopped fine
Fresh parsley chopped fine
Ground hot pepper flakes*
Salt
Fresh ground black pepper
Olive oil
Plain bread crumbs

Place the finely chopped onions, stems and mushrooms in a frying pan with olive oil and sauté over medium heat till they reduce in volume by half. Add all the garlic, oregano, basil, parsley, hot pepper, salt, black pepper (all to tatse) and the porcini mushroom liquid to pan and cook over medium heat till liquids are mostly evaporated. Place in large bowl and add just enough crumbs to hold together. You may add a bit more olive oil if needed to bind the ingredients. Stuff each cap and place on a lipped cookie sheet with a small amount of water. Cover pan with foil and place in a 450F oven. Cook till a knife inserted in side of mushroom comes out easily. Then place under broil to brown and crisp tops.

*Tip: I grind my hot pepper flakes to powder in my food processor. It incorporates more easily and eliminates "hot" spots. Really good for shaking on foods also.

 

[Cooksie]

I love to see a Seven Layer Salad at a potluck, very easy and pretty too.

 

[SierraCook]

I usually bring salads or crockpot dishes to potlucks. Salads are easy to transport in a ice chest and crockpots are great as long as you have somewhere to plug in the crockpot. Here are a couple of my favorite salads for potlucks that always get great reviews.

Broccoli Salad

Salad:

6 cups broccoli florets
½ cup dried cranberries
½ cup minced red onion
2 tablespoons sugar
¼ cup slivered almonds, toasted
4 strips of bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled

Dressing:

½ cup olive oil
¼ cup lemon juice
1½ teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon stone ground mustard
¼ teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper

Cut large broccoli florets into bite-size pieces. Place all salad ingredients in a large bowl; set aside. Whisk together dressing ingredients in medium bowl and pour over salad. Toss well to coat all ingredients with dressing. Refrigerate until well chilled. Serves: 6 - 8


Spinach Salad with Sun-dried Tomatoes and Farfalle

Salad:

1 lb. farfalle (bowtie) pasta
1 bunch green onions
1 ¾ oz. sun-dried tomatoes, cut into strips
1 lb. spinach, stalks trimmed and leaves shredded
1/3 cup toasted pine nuts

Dressing:

½ - ¾ cup olive oil
2 tablespoons chopped chilies (Serrano or jalapeno)
2 cloves garlic, finely diced
Salt and pepper, to taste

Cook pasta in a large pan of rapidly boiling salted water until al dente. Drain, rinse under cold water and drain again. Allow to cool and transfer to a large salad bowl. Trim the green onions and finely slice diagonally. Add to pasta with the sun-dried tomato, spinach, and pine nuts. To make dressing, combine the oil, chilies, garlic, salt, and pepper, in a small screw top jar and shake well. Pour the dressing over the top of salad. Toss well and serve. Serves 6.