What do people want these days at potluck meals?

debodun

debodun

SF VIP
Location
way upstate in New York, USA
I've tried and tried to figure out what people would like to have at church socials and other potluck functions. Most of the time I end up bringing home what I brought. This past Sunday, we had an after service potluck and about 30 people stayed for it. I brought home-made fruitcake, macadamia nut cookies and red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting. Dishes others brought were pea soup, meatballs in tomato sauce, assorted crackers, asiago cheese & garlic dip, egg salad sandwiches, peanut butter cookies and unfrosted bundt cake.

I was surprised that the fruitcake, peanut butter cookies and macadamia nut cookies were completely gone. The egg salad sandwiches disappeared and about half the bundt cake. Some things that looked hardly touched were the asiago dip, the meatballs and my red velvet cake. It seems people aren't very interested in gooey desserts, sloppy food (like soup or food in sauces) or strongly flavored food (like the asiago dip, which I thought was very good and told the people that brought it so). It seems people around here want bland, run-of-the-mill foods. Any opinions?

BTW - most of the people at this church are age 70 or older, in fact the pastor mentioned one parishioner celebrating her 95th birthday this week.
 

Around here, green chile chicken enchilada casserole is ALWAYS a big hit. Don't see hardly any potlucks any more. We used to have one among several different law firms at Christmas when I was still working. Great food -- desserts were always kinda slow, though, because so many people are trying to stay away from high calorie sugary things -- me included, unless there's rhubarb pie or a big fat decadent chocolate cake.
 
Butterfly said:
Around here, green chile chicken enchilada casserole is ALWAYS a big hit. Don't see hardly any potlucks any more. We used to have one among several different law firms at Christmas when I was still working. Great food -- desserts were always kinda slow, though, because so many people are trying to stay away from high calorie sugary things -- me included, unless there's rhubarb pie or a big fat decadent chocolate cake.
Click to expand...

Well, you beat me to the punch, I was going to say that, exactly. Can't go wrong with an enchilada casserole, only problem is you might not have much left to take back home...:shrug:
 

I've always brought my noodle dish called pancit bihon and everyone likes it because I mix a lot of veggies in it.

When they ask me for the recipe, I'm embarrassed to say I can give the ingredients and where to buy them but I dont follow measurements. My mentors taught me to cook w/o measurements and fortunately, food turns out edible.
 
In the past, I've contributed casseroles of baked ziti, baked Spanish rice, scalloped potatoes, baked beans, macaroni salad, potato salad, 5 cup salad, glorified rice, etc...

For the dessert table, lemon squares and brownies are easy to make and quick to disappear.

I have to confess that although I contribute to potluck meals I can never bring myself to eat at one.

The whole idea of not knowing under what conditions the food was prepared, stored, or transported grosses me out.
 
hellomimi said:
I've always brought my noodle dish called pancit bihon and everyone likes it because I mix a lot of veggies in it.

When they ask me for the recipe, I'm embarrassed to say I can give the ingredients and where to buy them but I dont follow measurements. My mentors taught me to cook w/o measurements and fortunately, food turns out edible.
Click to expand...
Don't be embarrassed when you can't give exact measurements.. when asked , just say that ''As with all the greatest chefs , I measure with my eyes, and taste with my heart'' :giggle:
 
I always brought my peach cobbler to potlucks when I lived in that small town of Center, Texas. My best friend's husband loved it and could be seen scraping the dish clean when I went to collect it. I made him a dish of it for his birthday and he said it was his best present ever! Crazy, but I still have that Pyrex dish now.
 
MarciKS said:
deviled eggs. not trying to be a smart aleck you know cuz you're talking about church. i love deviled eggs. i could suck those down by the truckload.
Click to expand...

My great-grandmother told me that she had been severely criticized by one of the "church ladies" for serving Devil's Food Cake when they had the new minister over for Sunday dinner. Apparently that wasn't appropriate. She said, "Well, he ate it just like it was angel's food cake, he did, and he had a second piece!"
 
There's a woman that brings "deviled" eggs to the church coffee fellowship every 4th Sunday of the month. I could make a meal of her DEs. The pastor says we can't call them by their popular name; we have to refer to them as "angel" eggs or simply stuffed eggs. Sometimes I think people can carry religion too far - after all, a rose by any other name....
 
debodun said:
There's a woman that brings "deviled" eggs to the church coffee fellowship every 4th Sunday of the month. I could make a meal of her DEs. The pastor says we can't call them by their popular name; we have to refer to them as "angel" eggs or simply stuffed eggs. Sometimes I think people can carry religion too far - after all, a rose by any other name....
Click to expand...
Your pastor is either crazy or just kidding around.
 
Used to love salad bars also. Krogers used to have a salad bar in the store. You could get a container, fill with different types of lettuces, cheeses, meats and veggies. Since I have been having groceries delivered, I don't know if they still have it or not. It was sold by the pound so you could get a ton of stuff for about $2.00.

It would last me a few meals since I could take out as much as I wanted and keep the rest in the fridge. Already had several kinds of dressings to finish with.
 
I'm not sure about that now. I don't think these places are allowed to have anything out that's self serve. It's gotta pre-packaged.
 

You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top