[elibrown]

So my sister-in-law's baby shower is coming up in two weeks, and she is concerned that I won't have one single thing to eat, so I volunteered to bring something veggie to add to all the rest of the food. Trouble is, these are very, um, down-home people if you know what I mean and they're type to get scared off by "vegetarian" foods. See I'm thinking hummus, avocado sushi rolls, cucumber sandwiches, etc. but I know if I brought something like that, they'd all scoff at it and head for the little smokies, and I'd be taking home an embarrassingly full plate of finger foods.<br><br><br><br>
I'd like to avoid that situation and make something that is recognizable and friendly to pretty much everyone. I can spend other times trying to introduce my in-laws to ethnic, gourmet, and trendy foods, but this time I just want to relax and have fun with my family and not feel bad because no one eats my food. Any suggestions?

 

[orapunzel]

Would Olive tapendae be too far off the scope for them?<br><br><br><br>
Or veggie spring rolls? (Heck you can save yourself a bunch of time and buy them pre-made.)<br><br><br><br>
What about a "cowboy caviar" - it's like a bean salsa thing. (I can PM you the recipe.) Really easy to make and the recipe I have makes a ton. You could make this and really... you could eat just off this and be satisfied.

 

[orapunzel]

Or... what about a pesto dip with crackers or bread?

 

[Tesseract]

7-layer dip with corn chips? That's about as down-home as it gets. Hummus and assorted dippers? Hot spinach-artichoke dip and assorted dippers? <a href="http://www.veggieboards.com/boards/showthread.php?t=46688" target="_blank">Garlicky White Beans and Spinach</a> with baguette rounds or ciabatta rolls? That yummy cold spinach dip with water chestnuts and peppers, and baguette rounds or ciabatta rolls?<br><br><br><br>
Hmm, I seem to be obsessing about spinach-y foods ATM. Luckily, I've got spinach ravioli for dinner!

 

[jeneticallymodified]

-black bean chilli (i put corn, carrot and zuccini in mine too) and cornbread?<br><br><br><br>
-oven roasted veggies and rice salad (with maybe some tofu strips for you)?<br><br><br><br>
-an interesting looking veggie/coleslaw salad, or tomato pasta salad but without any weird ingredients, maybe with some garlic bread (love garlic!)?<br><br><br><br>
-baked bean pie - basically, its garlic mashed potatoes covering some homemade baked beans, mixed in with some veggie (meaty looking) sausages, all put under the grill so its crunchy on top... maybe with some nutritional yeast or fake powdered cheese on top?<br><br><br><br>
- garlic and rosemary roasted new potatoes, served with green beans, and baby tomato slices, with a squeeze of lemon and some earth balance margarine mixed into the veggies?<br><br><br><br>
veggie lasagne (made with brown lentils instead of tofu- nobody'll notice!)?

 

[Sunny]

I was going to suggest the 7 layer bean dip too. And just in case their is any question about how I feel about the Garlicy White Beans and Spinach...I give it a double <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="/images/smilies/drool.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title=":drool:"><img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="/images/smilies/drool.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title=":drool:">

 

[Tofu-N-Sprouts]

Does it need to be "finger foods"?<br><br><br><br>
Are you vegan or vegetarian?<br><br><br><br>
If you want other people to eat "your" food too, make it SUPER SIMPLE and recognizable to omnis...<br><br><br><br>
You could make a simple plate of veggies and dip and just make the dip vegan if needed (Lots of vegan "ranch" recipes out there that'd fool anyone).<br><br><br><br>
Potato salad, made with any "traditional" recipe but sub Vegennaise, will also fool even the die-hards.<br><br><br><br>
If you're vegetarian, make deviled eggs. Everyone thinks those are great.<br><br><br><br>
Stuffed mushrooms? Stuff with breadcrumbs and pesto, or with your favorite bread dressing/stuffing recipe and then broil until mushroom caps are done. (I think I posted a recipe a while back, I'll search) People gobble these up though.<br><br><br><br>
A couple boxes of crackers or breadsticks and a "Tofutti Cream Cheese" -based spread would probably be popular too...<br><br><br><br>
I take stuff to heavily omni potlucks, showers, picnics and BBQ's all the TIME and never make a big deal about it being vegan, everyone eats it and loves it. Sometimes I don't even get ANY of the food I brought because all the silly omnis ate it! HA!

 

[karenM]

Mmmmm.. all of the above sound good! <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="/images/smilies/lick.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title=":lick:"><br><br><br><br>
Could you bring pasta? Either hot (primavera? capellini pomodoro?), or a pasta salad?<br><br><br><br>
Also, something that's super easy to make, and NO ONE can resist: hot breadsticks, or foccacia topped with carmelized onions/herbs/cracked pepper and salt/whatever, and a bowl of marinara dipping sauce. If you don't want to make your own dough, you can use store-bought pizza or bread dough. Just bake, cut into manageable pieces, and serve with the warm sauce.<br><br><br><br>
Or even easier: Toss together chopped tomatoes, chopped onion, minced garlic, chopped fresh basil, olive oil, salt and pepper, and maybe a dash or two of balsamic vinegar. Serve in a big bowl surrounded with small ready-to-load baguette slices (seasoned and toasted if you wish).<br><br><br><br>
Good luck with whatever you decide!

 

[courgette]

Our group of friends (trust me when I say my being vegan is completely unfathomable to them) gets together for barbeques several times over the summer. They always ask me to bring what is referred to around here as veggie pizza. I determined the last time to make it vegan.<br><br><br><br>
Take as many tubes of Pillsbury Crescent Rolls (they're vegan) as it takes to cover the bottom of a sheet pan. I usually use 3 because I make a rather large pan. Unroll the dough and press onto the sheet pan, pressing to seal the seams closed. Prick all over with a fork, then bake at directed temp until done. Let cool completely.<br><br><br><br>
Meanwhile, thin some Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese with some Sour Supreme, some soy milk or some Vegenaise, your choice, to get a spreading consistancy. The original recipe called for stirring in some ranch dressing mix, but instead I stirred in some onion powder, garlic powder and fresh ground black pepper. Spread on cooled crescent roll crust.<br><br><br><br>
Next top with some chopped fresh veggies. I like to chop things quite small and I usually use red pepper, green onion, black olives, broccoli, carrots, radishes, tomato (diced small, roma works best) and cucumber. Normally I would top it with shredded parmesan, but this time I simply left it off and didn't mention it.<br><br><br><br>
Using a pizza cutter I cut the "pizza" into squares and each square into triangles. It is then easy to cover with plastic wrap and transport to the party, the triangles can then be transferred to a plate if you wish.<br><br><br><br>
BTW, I don't know if my friends were aware of the changes, but every single piece was eaten!

 

[MZCsmpsns]

I agree w/a lot of what others said... veggie platters are ALWAYS popular(with or without dressing, they're always scarfed down...adding PB to celery is delicious, too). Pasta/potato salads are excellent (omnis often don't realize they're eating vegan) Almost everybody loves stuffed mushrooms(a more "fancy" dish, too-ppl are always impressed). Crackers are good, and you can make your own veggie dip for them. Salsa and chips, vegan bean dip(even crumble some type of vegan meat sub to make it more hearty and "omni friendly"). Vegan cookies or cake. A delicious leafy veggie filled tossed salad w/homemade dressing. etc..etc.. all those are very non-intimidating to omnis, and are foods they probably eat all the time w/out even knowing they're vegan!

 

[cookingVeg]

Soba noodles with sesame seeds and green onions (there's a dressing, too -- something like soy sauce, rice vinegar, sugar, and sesame oil, I think) are always popular.

 

[aotto08]

Whenever I go to parties, I bake some vegan cookies or cupcakes. Make some palin, make some chocolate, and people will eat them. Most don't realize that the recipee is vegan.....They are always a hit with me!<br><br><br><br>
One good cupcake recipee is to get some basic choclate cake mix (check the ingredients, some brands add powdered milk), and add a can of pumkin pie filling. I didn't tell my co-workers they were vegan, and they scarfed them down wicked quick!

 

[teddygee]

Phyllo dough tartlets. If you're not afraid of the phyllo dough part, they're very easy to make, terribly pretty to look at, and you can really put whatever sorts of tasty goodness you like into them. I do a layering process of melted chocolate on the bottom, a layer of fresh fruit(like cherries) or a fruit jam, a layer of honey-toasted(I know, I'm a hypocrippie vegan) cashews, a dollop of tofu raspberry cream, and another layer of melted chocolate. The possibilities, though, for each layer, are quite endless. The other day I used my base tofu cream recipe and made an almond honey cream. You could do hazelnuts or peanuts, strawberries or oranges...whatever combinations you like. I made a tofu mint chocolate chip cream that was good, too. But it most certainly does not taste like tofu, and it would be a good finger-food in the individual-sized phyllo cups.<br><br><br><br>
PM me if you'd like the recipe!<br><br><br><br>
- teddygee

 

[enigma]

Super-easy and popular in the summer: chocolate-dipped strawberries.<br><br><br><br>
Though not very substantial if you're worried there won't be anything else you can eat, of course.

 

[veggiewriter]

<div class="quote-container"><span>Quote:</span>
<div class="quote-block">Originally Posted by <strong>hoodedclawjen</strong> <a href="/forum/post/0"><img alt="View Post" class="inlineimg" src="/img/forum/go_quote.gif" style=""></a><br><br><br>
-baked bean pie - basically, its garlic mashed potatoes covering some homemade baked beans, mixed in with some veggie (meaty looking) sausages, all put under the grill so its crunchy on top... maybe with some nutritional yeast or fake powdered cheese on top?<br></div>
</div>
<br><br><br>
OMG, this sounds SO good, there's no way I'm waiting for the next party before I make it. This is dinner tonight! Thanks. <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="/images/smilies/smiley.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="">

 

[elibrown]

Oh wow, thank you SO MUCH everybody! These are all amazing suggestions. I'm vegetarian, and the foods do have to be finger foods- this is going to be a short, light, afternoon affair. But there are plenty of suggestions here that I think will keep me very busy experimenting for the next few days. Thanks again!