Tips, Recipes, and Ideas to Help You Plan a Vegan Potluck

Celebrating the end of summer can be such fun. If you're anything like I am, you want to keep weekend entertaining simple and low fuss. 

Why not have the gang over, and share the food prep with your nearest and dearest? Want to make the theme one that's especially nutritious and delicious? My suggestion is to plan a Vegan Potluck. 

Take a peek at this sample party invitation. It describes what vegan is and is not. It also provides ideas that your guests can choose from to bring. 
    

You're Invited to a Vegan Potluck

Bring a Brunch or Lunch Item with Serving Utensils. To help conserve, reuse, and recycle please bring your own reusable plate, and appetite. Your hosts will be making veggie wraps and provide the beverages.

Please keep it simple, and contribute something that doesn't need to be heated. If you're not sure what vegan means ...

Every Vegetable or Fruit under the sun

Every Grain, Legume, Bean, Seed, or Nut in the world 

Vegan does not mean any dairy product including yogurt, cheese, milk, cream, butter or beef or other meat product including pork, fish product, poultry product (including eggs), honey, or mayonnaise or bread with egg in it. 

If you need help thinking of a dish or are still unclear about what vegan means, please call us or look below for ideas. We prefer stuff to be organic, but please make sure that it is at least NON-GMO. 

tossed green salad 

three bean salad

sandwiches

tabbouleh

quinoa pilaf or salad

veggie stew or combo

gazpacho or fruit soup

hummus

organic fruit or organic fruit salad

guacamole

salsa and chips

lentil or bean loaf

kale chips or corn chips

pasta salad (without cheese or mayo with egg)

potato salad (made with vegan mayo or dressing without egg)

sweet potatoes

shredded carrot salad

cole slaw (made with vegan mayo or dressing without egg)

spinach salad (without bacon)

organic tofu or organic tempeh dish

organic edamame in pod

nuts and dried fruit
bread, cakes, cookies made without eggs, butter, milk, yogurt, cream, cheese or other dairy or meat derived ingredients

seeds

squash

vegetable medley

veggie pâté

                                                    ******

My contribution to a party like this would be the wraps and my latest favorite party food, Homemade Hummus with a Kick.

Hummus dip has gained popularity over the last decade. There are many varieties of hummus served nowadays. I've made roasted garlic, kalamata olive, roasted red pepper, and artichoke and love them all. The costly store bought form can be easily made at home for a fraction of the price. Today I'll share my favorite recipe of the moment so you can see how simple and tasty it is to make.

Homemade Hummus with a Kick

Hummus with a Grilled Veggie Tossed Salad

Ingredients:

1 Tablespoon Organic Olive Oil

4 Garlic Cloves minced
1 teaspoon cumin

2 Cans Organic Garbanzo Beans (Also Called Chickpeas) rinsed and drained

1 teaspoon coriander
1 teaspoon chili powder
2 tablespoons Organic Tahini (ground sesame seeds)
¼ cup fresh squeezed Lemon Juice

1 Cup Water

Note: I use organic items whenever possible, because they taste better, are healthier for you, and don't pollute the planet.

What to Do:

Heat oil in a small frying pan and add minced garlic and cumin. Sauté for a minute or two or until lightly browned.

Put this mixture and next 5 ingredients in a food processor and purée for a moment. Add the water slowly, and as needed, to make the hummus a smooth consistency or as chunky as you like. Grind in fresh black pepper and salt to taste.

Chill until ready to serve. Hummus will keep in the refrigerator for approximately 5 days. This recipe serves 8-10 people, and can be served to top grilled veggie salads, in a romaine lettuce or collard green hummus veggie wrap, or on a crudité platter with crackers, corn chips, or pita chips.

Check out this whole food quinoa casserole dish, perfect to bring along to the next potluck. Vividly Colored Plant-based Dish that's Great to Serve at a Potluck.

To end your gathering on a high note, Serve a chilled Red, White, and Blue Dessert.

Here in the United States it’s the Labor Day Weekend. This public holiday honors the American labor movement and its workers. This year it's celebrated on September 5, 2016. I’m proud to say I've done my part to strengthen, create prosperity, and add to the well-being of our country. Wishing you a most relaxing weekend and fun-filled Labor Day.

Please take a moment to comment and share the LOVE!

Picture Credit/freerangestock.com

My quote for today is: “There is no sincerer love than the love of food.” George Bernard Shaw

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Take Action with Your Food Shopping Dollars

This post was updated on May 10, 2018

When I crave plush parsley for Tabouli or juicy Pink Lady Apples for a snack, I go to my herb garden, my local farmers’ market, or the health food store, rather than journey to the supermarket. I take advantage of the simplicity, intimacy, and quality this way of meeting my food needs provides.

When plums, carrots, lettuce, and cucumbers aren't commercially prepackaged, my tactile, visual, and olfactory senses can determine the best buys of the day. I select fruits and veggies that smell garden-fresh, are vivid in color, appear unblemished, and are crisp or firm to the touch. Close examination increases my chance that the produce I get won’t spoil before I get to prepare, serve, and eat it. That’s why I check leaves, roots, peel or skin, and pick ripe but not mushy fruits and vegetables.

I shop in a local store that uses minimal packaging, thereby conserving natural resources and reducing the amount of new garbage dumped in our landfills. I bring canvas shopping bags whenever I shop for food or other goods, and reduce my carbon footprint even more.

My routine is to check ahead, so I know what days of the week orders are delivered. On food shopping days, I remain flexible with menu planning. I want to get those items that are in-season, at the peak of freshness, and that fit in with my nutritional needs. At a local market, I'm not forced to stock up and buy three prepackaged red peppers, when all I need is one. This allows me the freedom to buy no more than I can serve within a day or two.

In late summer, when Wilcox farms are resplendent with mouth-watering peaches, this locally grown fruit is unquestionably the best! Assembly line and out of season crops from South America or New Zealand may be in transit for several days and sit in warehouses for weeks, before they reach the mega stores and then my table. The local harvest may be too small to satisfy supermarket quotas, but when made available in neighborhood stores, far surpass bland cardboard tasting imports.  

Since these places are nearby, I don't waste gas. The errand is an opportunity to catch up on what's happening in my neighborhood and make other stops along the way. I enjoy the cordiality and informality of dealing with people I know. Lines are short, sometimes none-existent, and eliminate much of the impersonal nature of life in the express lane of the supermarket.

I love to shop at my local health food store and farmers’ market, because they sell organic. This is an important reason why my produce including tomatoes, grapes, potatoes, and kale are so tasty and healthful. These items haven’t been waxed, chemically sprayed, irradiated, or injected with additives. If a product is marked organic, I know it isn't genetically altered either. 

I make the conscious choice to eat foods that are in the original state Mother Nature intended. I also know that organic farming doesn’t use synthetic pesticides and pollutants. Each time I shop organic I save a small spot of the planet by not polluting the ground, water, air, or my body. 

For all the reasons mentioned above, I write letters, blogs, and pen articles that alert the public and you dear reader to those manufacturers, the FDA, elected officials, and stores that contribute to the sale of food products that help and harm the food supply. 

I put my money where my mouth is and boycott products that are genetically modified or I deem unsafe. 

An increasing demand for organics and non-genetically modified foods motivates farmers, manufacturers, suppliers, wholesalers, and retailers to pay closer attention to what they offer for sale. If we are vocal enough, organics can become more readily available and at a lower price.

Here's info from Eating Well Magazine that addresses this question:

Should You Buy Organic?

 Shopping and growing food in my neighborhood, gives me a feeling of continuity and community. Even more basic, it gives me a sense of history and earlier people, who hunted, gathered, and grew food for their families. I’ve noticed the path to my home vegetable garden reverberates with the sound of their steps as well as those of my ancestors’ footprints too. Being a part of the food circle, draws me close to the Source. I give thanks to the Earth in her richness and all the people who play a part in bringing this bounty to me.

Then, I reflect about those who may not use their power. Illness, poverty, apathy, fear, or lack of knowledge may be an issue for them. I am grateful that at least 25 years ago, I set the intention to do what I can to share a healthful meal with others, contribute to the Community Food Bank, and volunteer to do shopping for a shut in. In what ways do you share your abundance? How do you spread the word about local, healthful food? I challenge you to use your intelligence and find a way to be bold and take action. 

Positive change starts with that first right step. 

This is an older part of this post. I left it up, because some links to it still exist. I'm sad to say it passed.

Some of you may know that I'm passionate about an issue that is up for debate in the U.S. Senate. I hope my blogger friends and fans, social media buddies, and readers will help support my efforts.

Here's the deal... Please read it all, because there's still time to stop this bill from passing in the U.S. Senate.

The House of Representatives voted on and 

passed H.R. 1599, a bill that basically would 

block your right to know whether your foods 

come from genetically engineered sources 

(GMO's). This bill is also called the Dark Act

by many, because the politicians that wrote it 

and those in favor of it are agra-

businesses like Monsanto and Dow Chemical 

(who manufacture GMO's and herbicides they 

use in GMO seeds). They are companies that 

have spent mega-bucks lobbying for this bill to 

pass). They call it the "Safe And Accurate Food 

Act of 2015," but nothing is further from the 

truth.This bill would block your right to decide 

after reading a label whether you want to 

purchase and eat that product. 

Be a Valuable Part of the Solution

Contact your state U.S. Senators and tell them 

your opinion. Say no to H.R. 1599 and yes to 

your right to know. Here's a link to contact 

all the U.S. Senators 

U.S. Senator Contact Information

Please comment by emailing me at obloggernewbie@gmail.com or reach out through social media. Nancy-Andres-Health-Lifestyle-Writer-Author on Facebook and Nancy Andres on Pinterest.

I’d love to hear what steps you take or plan to take to shop local, grow local, vote with your food shopping dollars, and do your share to be politically responsible on food safety issues. The recent March 2015 Declaration of the World Health Organization (WHO) to stop manufacture and use of glyphosate (an ingredient in Roundup), a carcinogenic herbicide used on nearly 90 percent of GMO crops, is critical evidence that GMO products must be labeled (and then outlawed) and this bill must be voted down.

Here's the link again Contact Information for U.S. Senate

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This is what Lorraine Schwartz from NM shared with me.

"Your article on food choices was really good. Some of us need the reminder to support our local farmer's markets and natural grocers. We have one locally owned health food store in town so it is good to know that any purchases provide good paying jobs in addition to knowing the food is fresher and healthier. Cid's Market has been in business for over 25 years and is owned and run by a couple formerly from New Rochelle. Keep up the writing-it gets better all the time. So happy your book is doing well."

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The quotation for today is:

"I would like to see people more aware of where their food comes from. I would like to see small farmers empowered. I feed my daughter almost exclusively organic food."

Anthony Bourdain

Read more at http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/a/anthonybou552939.html#rxk1C21pHAXMerrI.99