Well I have officially been suckered into attending a potluck with a bunch of not so close acquaintances and am in need of a potluck recipe that tastes great and is at least fairly easy to make. Thanks for any suggestions! (anything as long as it is a main course)
Pot Luck Try this link: http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&...oi=revisions_narrow&resnum=4&ct=revision&cd=1 or Food Network
My wife makes something called Veg-All Casserole that is really easy to make. You take three cans of Veg-All brand vegetables and drain them. Then you melt one stick of butter and one can of Campbell's Cheese Soup mix, undiluted, together and mix well. Pour the Veg-All brand vegetables that have been drained into a 12X9 inch casserole dish. Pour the Cheese Soup and butter or margarine mixture onto that and mix well. Place into the oven at 350 degrees for a few minutes until you see it bubble. While you are waiting for the cheese mixture to bubble, take two sleeves of Ritz brand crackers and crush to the size of your little fingernail. Melt a stick of butter and mix the crackers and the butter together. When the mixture in the casserole dish starts to bubble, sprinkle the Ritz cracker mixture on top and return to the oven. Allow the Ritz cracker mixture to brown slightly and then wrap in aluminum foil and take to your function. Try to keep it warm in a warm oven or keep out of drafts. This can be reheated and is really better the next day than it is the first.
I've never even heard of that which means I am going to have to give it a try. I have issues getting the kids to eat veggies at home so I may just try it this week and who knows maybe with the veggies all covered in cheese and ritz crackers they won't fight me as hard. We've decided for the potluck to bring 2 dishes since someone backed out last minute so this makes one and hopefully 2 comes around soon enough. Thanks again. And thanks toolman those links fed us tonight - really great recipe sites.
That does seem to work, I've noticed. A few nights ago I did a broccoli and cauliflower mix... the topping was cream of chicken soup with swiss cheese melted in it and a few other ingredients... onions, milk, etc. It was a hit here as I hoped it would be.
I make a chicken casserole which takes a lot of steps but isn't hard to do. You have to boil chicken in broth or stock with chopped up celery, carrots and onions until done. Reserving the liquid strain the solids out and chop up the chicken in pieces when removed from the bone. Mix up two boxes of chicken dressing mix with 1/2 the amount of liquid you normally need (instructions on the box). Combine a can of cream of chicken soup and a can of cream of celery soup. mix into the dressing mix. Place the veggies and the chicken pieces in the dressing mix and stir together. Place all into a 9inch by 13 inch baking pan and place in the oven at 350 degrees until browned and heated through. Serve. This is honestly pretty good except for the steps you have to go through to get it done.
I put a jar of Alfredo sauce in a crock pot, shred some cooked chicken breast into it, then stir in some cooked pasta like the spirals or bows. (whatever the proper term is for them) Then I keep it warm at a low heat until I serve it. Sometimes I add lightly steamed broccoli as the last stage. As for amounts, I'm always using leftover chicken, so unfortunately, it's different every time. I suggest just paying attention as you're stirring it up to get a good balance of sauce and pasta.
This really sounds great! And sounds like the type of thing that's usually a hit at potlucks. Another thing that goes fast is little cocktail meatballs that usually have some fabulous sauce on them and toothpicks with which to pick them up.
Here's a nice bean (three bean, actually) salad. Make it in the afternoon, refrigerate, and then take along. Use either canned, or dry beans rehydrated. I use kidney, garbanzo, and green beans. Chop up a purple onion to a pretty fine dice, but leave some slices to put on top of the salad when you're done. Mix up the beans and chopped onion with a nice Italian dressing (store bought or your own recipe) to taste. Put the onion slices artistically over the whole thing, and refrigerate. I've seen bean salads at some delis, but they were expensive, inedible, and couldn't hold a candle to this bean salad.
I like things like this for picnics... I've not tried with the Italian dressing, though... that would certainly make it a lot easier! My three-bean recipe is still very simple, but this would cut out the part of making the dressing from oil, vinegar, sugar, herbs, and those other ingredients I can't recall at the moment.
It is a grand picnic dish, it's true; certainly less preparation than a potato salad.That said, there's usually got to be potato salad at our picnics, my family loves it so!
I've never seen a good old garlic bread loaf go uneaten at a potluck! If you're really busy you can buy an already made one. If you want to make it you need a long loaf of French, Italian, or sourdough bread (I prefer sourdough bread), split it, and add some softened butter or margarine (you can add a bit of olive oil to the butter/margarine when it's soft, then add your herbs and spices. Garlic, of course, is #1. Dice the garlic into fine pieces, or rub the bread with a garlic clove. The other spices are up to you; I use oregano, basil, a touch of tarragon, onion powder/salt, a tad of dill, and whatever else I feel like. When you're done, wrap it in foil and right before you go, put it in a 350-400 degree oven for about 15-20 minutes. Take it out, wrap it in several kitchen towels, put it in a cloth grocery bag if you have a clean one. Take a knife so you can cut pieces in the bread before serving.
That's what it's like for all of our family gatherings, too... but when it's summer and outside, I really wish they'd opt for other dishes. The mayo can really be a health risk... but they don't listen and keep bringing it. Sometimes I eat it and sometimes I don't... and after sitting out in the heat for more than an hour, it needs to be tossed but still I see people picking at the leftovers. NOT good!
Although it sounds totally delicious and would go great with a lot of potluck dishes, I'm trying to remember if I've ever seen a garlic bread loaf at a potluck or picnic. I don't think I have... I'll need to keep this in mind.
Once for a potluck I made a dozen muffins, and the first few people took two apiece; so much for my contribution. With a garlic bread you've got alot more pieces for more servings, plus if you've made it nice and spicy people will restrict themselves.
Take a package of frozen mixed vegetables, thaw in microwave, mix with mayonaise and cooked spiral pasta shape. Serve cold.
Hey, this sounds great! A whole lot easier than the pasta salad I'm planning to make this morning for tonight's dinner. Actually maybe I'll have to make it a little more healthy and add some veggies now that I've read this.
