January 26, 2018

Potluck

Don't think there's a recipe for spring rolls here, but these look great!

I belong to a vegan group that gets together about once a month for lunch out. It's a fun way to enjoy great conversation and explore all the vegan restaurant options in our city. At the last event, one of my friends from the group, Sandra, told me she belongs to another vegan group in the nearby city of Bellevue, that holds a potluck every month. They choose a theme for the potluck by the 'idea-on-a-piece-of-paper-drawn-from-a-hat' method, and her idea was selected for the next potluck. I think they usually pick a popular vegan cookbook, but she wrote Andrea's easy vegan cooking on her piece of paper, and everyone was supposed to cook something from my blog. Would I like to come?

Roasted veggies

 A more extroverted, confident person might have been thrilled and honored, but I was horrified. I tried to remain calm and 'normal' but I was experiencing thoughts like, "what if the recipes don't work?" "What if everything comes out awful?" "What if they hate the blog?" After recovering from the sensation of having sharp kitchen knives hurled at me, I said I would attend, if the date didn't conflict with my grandson's fifth birthday party. His birthday was occurring on a Tuesday,  and I didn't yet know which weekend day would be selected for his party. I even started to look forward to the potluck, and think about what I might bring.

Braised greens with tofu, cashews and raisins.

As it turned out, the date of the potluck was also the date of the Women's March in Seattle, as well as my grandson's party. We spent the morning and early afternoon at the march, the late afternoon at the joy-filled birthday party, and the evening at a quieter family birthday dinner at the little guy's house. It was an amazing, exhilarating day, and while I'm truly sorry to have missed the potluck, I'm glad I spent most of it with my wonderful family.

Two chickpea salads.

According to Sandra, 14 people attended the potluck, and it was a success — everyone enjoyed the food. (I hope she's telling the truth!) I had asked her to take pictures, and the photos I'm sharing here are hers, reprinted with permission.

I liked this marcher's sign!
 

Here's a glimpse into what I did on the day of the potluck. As I mentioned, I participated in the women's march, as I did last year. It feels so uplifting during these troubling times, to be surrounded by people who believe in justice, kindness, truth, etc.



I took a couple of photos of marchers and their signs.



And here's the birthday boy, just after blowing out the candles on his cupcake. Some days there are just not enough hours to do everything you want.

8 comments:

  1. Wow, a potluck based entirely on your blog- How cool, and what an honor! I'm not at all surprised it was such a hit. Your recipes are always so delicious and inspiring.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Cool and an honor, yes — but a bit nerve wracking as well. Thanks for your kind words!

      Delete
  2. I think I'd be a bit freaked out if I knew people were making my food for a potluck! I'd be very flattered, and rather pleased if I got all those favourable reviews. The march sounds like a tonic at the moment - how good to remind yourself there are good people out there, fighting for what's right.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think you've perfectly captured my responses to both the potluck and the march. Yes, exactly.

      Delete
  3. I'm so glad I stumbled upon your delightful blog!

    A happy belated birthday to your grandson, it looks like he had a really good time!

    And I must add, all that food looks delicious!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Lon, for the compliment! As for the party, it was so much fun — all the children had a great time.

      Delete
  4. What a fun day! the potluck looks awesome, your recipes always look great. :-) A belated happy birthday to your grandson, can't believe he's already 5.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I can't believe he's five either. And his sister is 10! However, my other son just added a new baby boy to his family so we also have a two-month old and his two-year-old sister to gloat over. They were all here last night, and the house was filled with joyful chaos! The house sure seems smaller when the kids are here.

      Delete

Thanks for visiting Andrea's easy vegan cooking. I love, and read, all of your comments! Please share your thoughts.

There are a few Amazon links in the posts. Thanks in advance if you click on one.

Note: ALL THE IMAGES FROM THIS BLOG WERE ACCIDENTALLY DELETED ON 1-21-12. I'M RESTORING THEM, POST BY POST, BUT IT WILL TAKE A LONG TIME. Recipe pages you visit may be missing photos, but all the text in intact. If you find a post without images, let me know so I can fix it. Thanks!