Comments | veggieslackers: I'm stumped for ideas

thesammichfox in veggieslackers

I'm stumped for ideas

Feb 17, 2011 20:56

At the end of march I will be throwing my daughter a birthday party, now normally I wouldn't have an issue with things like this I have plenty of vegetarian recipes my family loves. But it has been discovered that my daughter has a milk allergy which we have gone from vegetarian to vegan as a house hold because of it. So now I need to plan a ( Read more... )

Comments 21

lunamorgan February 18 2011, 03:08:18 UTC

What about a casserole of some kind? Some kind of vegan "loaded" baked potato dish, using smashed potatoes, vegan sour cream, chives, green onions, etc. and baked ( ... )

thesammichfox February 18 2011, 03:24:06 UTC

I was actually thinking about a chilli or a curry, which I will probably end up making a chilli seeing that it is less adventurous and more likely to be eaten. My relatives are weird sometimes with what they will and won't try. The potatoes sound like a really good side dish and I could easily make those with soy milk and a vegan sour cream and cheese with no one being the wiser. And the mexican seven layer dip would be a really awesome idea, I am going to make one of those for sure.

Thank you for the really awesome ideas!

lunamorgan February 18 2011, 03:53:53 UTC

No problem, good luck! I know how crazy relatives can be. I love mine, but my uncles are baffled by soy protein (I make chili, though, and just don't remind them that anything I make is going to be veggie. They don't even notice the difference).

thesammichfox February 18 2011, 03:58:27 UTC

Yeah I'm not going to bother pointing it out, people are never the wiser anyways. I make cookies and cup cakes all the time that get gobbled up with no one the wiser. And it's also easier just to make something everyone can enjoy and Great Aunt whomever isn't going to make a big stink about not being invited because she had to give my kid a taste of something not safe for her.

Thread 6

ready2please February 18 2011, 03:43:06 UTC

Some bruschetta a small pieces of toast would make a great appetizer.

Or crusty bread, toasted with olive oil and sliced tomatoes with basil leaves with sea salt and fresh cracked pepper drizzled with more olive oil.

Pita chips with hummus dip and a variety of olives.

Another potato dish that I like is roasted red potatoes served warm tossed with pesto and chopped celery and red onion.

Are you making any green salad? Pick one that has all of the vegies that you like and have the dressings on the side. I also like spinach salad with sliced strawberries and slivered almonds. Or a romaine salad with mandarin oranges, thin sliced red onion, pine nuts and a vinagrette dressing.

I love all of the other ideas that you got from lunamorgan those are some very good ideas.

Good luck.

thesammichfox February 18 2011, 03:49:01 UTC

I love the ideas she gave too! And ooo I never even thought about doing a "fancier" salad, which would be an awesome idea. Between you and lunamorgan I have a full menu! Now I am feeling a lot better about it seeing that all of these idea's are really friendly those who are not vegan. I personally am so bad at thinking up a full menu and my parents answer to all parties is either pizza or hamburgers and hot dogs.

ready2please February 18 2011, 04:22:59 UTC

I am really glad that you liked the ideas and feel like you have a set of menu options. When I bring food to work for potlucks, or when I put meals together for people who aren't vegetarian, I get tons of comments about how good and fresh the food tastes. People say things about not even noticing there isn't any meat in there! I love how vegetables and fruits taste and I'll point that out to them and emphasize that without meat they may be tasting the vegetables for the first time.

I never preach but just try to bring new fresh things for people to experience.

thesammichfox February 18 2011, 04:28:50 UTC

Yeah I never really point out, and usually I am fine with the hamburg and hot dog option and bring something really fresh and good for one of my parents party. It's just what ever well meaning your kid should have meat or cheese relative is not going to be the one up all night with a sick toddler.

withinmywill February 18 2011, 04:29:40 UTC

http://www.care2.com/greenliving/holiday-party-fare-7-vegan-finger-food-recipes.html

I did some Google-ing and saw a couple of interesting links - this one looks the best.

kamaliitaru February 18 2011, 05:01:45 UTC

I would do a lentil chilli, as lunamorgan suggested. All those are excellent ideas. The only other things I can think of are some roast vegetable sandwiches? Or, you could do roast veggie wraps, they are fun, colorful, and tasty.

The most popular things I've done for parties have been hummus, cucumber, and black olive wraps (sometimes with other veggies in them, sometimes not), and some bean cakes - think crab cakes, but with beans instead of crab. Falafel is always popular as well.

I did have a question about the milk allergy - is it cows milk only? Because if it is, you could do something with goats cheese, like an onion and goat cheese tart, etc.

thesammichfox February 18 2011, 16:54:14 UTC

I am not sure if it's only cows milk, I haven't really let her try goats milk or cheese. More because of the fact that it is expensive and not something I want to drop the cash on for relatives I can barely stand on good days. But you know the whole obligated to get a long with the great aunts and uncles plus the in-laws even if you don't want to. This is also going to be one of the last parties I am inviting this many people too. We've lived out of state since she's been born and my mom is pressuring me to have a big party because we didn't have a proper first birthday for her. After this I will be putting my foot down and doing far smaller parties but right now it's not a hill I want to die on with my mom.

kamaliitaru February 18 2011, 20:16:12 UTC

That makes sense! I just wondered, because lack of cheese and/or some sort of milk kind of limits things. At least for me...If I were you, I'd be looking for some great bean and/or lentil recipes, since they are cheap, and can be tasty. Falafels, home made hummus (which is cheap as heck to make), lentil chili, and a white bean soup is what I do.

I don't have a recipe for white bean soup, I just mix some white beans, veggie stock, a few carrots, diced onion sauteed in olive oil, couple cloves garlic, some celery, maybe another veggie or two that I find in the market. Cook until beans are done, then season with salt, pepper, and basil. About 20 min before I'm ready to eat it, I add a ton of Kale, then reseason to taste.

A trick I learned with soups and stews is right before serving, I add up to a tablespoon of vinegar - you never taste the vinegar, but it makes the soup taste much better.

girlfmkitty February 18 2011, 16:10:49 UTC

THIS is my go to place for surefire vegan recipes.

Good luck with your party!

thesammichfox February 18 2011, 19:41:58 UTC

OMG that blog is amazing, heck I have new ideas for just daily cooking now! Thanks for the link!

girlfmkitty February 18 2011, 19:46:55 UTC

Sure thing! She's also on Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/FatFreeVegan