What to take to a potluck
This past weekend, I attended a raw vegan potluck! It was great fun. I made a recipe from the blog Love Veggies and Yoga, which are little chocolate balls.
To make chocolate balls, combine the following in a food processor: 3/4 cup ground flax, 1/4 cup raw cacao powder, a generous dash of cinnamon, and 2 tbsp raw honey. And 1/2 tbsp water if the batter doesn’t come together well. Once it’s all nicely mixed up and sticky, form into little bite-size balls. Enjoy!
(Full disclosure: I like making this at home, putting it in a bowl, and eating it with a spoon. Yum).
My vegan raw foodist friend Amanda was there, as was Jeff, my friend who started our urban indoor garden. There was a huge crowd of people, probably around 30 or 40, and we all did a short yoga sequence after mingling and before feasting. The boyfriend even tried yoga for the first time! (He spent most of it giggling. But still had fun :)).
Some of the foods at the potluck included the most delicious raw cheese spread on cucumbers, and an amazing marinated kale salad (I’ve tried kale dozens of times, in salads, smoothies, juices, and as chips, and I have never liked it until this salad). Those were easily my favourites. There were also almond butter balls, banana coconut pie, almonds dipped in chocolate, apples with beet dip, stuffed mushrooms, sweet potato chips with salsa, zucchini “noodles” in sauce, raw sushi rolls, apple/celery/walnut salad, and more! It was an impressive spread.
My plate!
There was very much a community feel about the entire event. These raw food events are held once a month; it’s great to see so many people who care about living healthy and who are interested in meeting other like-minded people. Many of the attendants weren’t raw foodists or even vegetarian, but they liked the idea of everyone getting together and doing yoga and sharing delicious food: it wasn’t about the raw food so much as building a community of healthy people. Such a lovely notion.
Something interesting I discovered as we were sampling the different foods was that one of the main reasons why raw food is very hit-or-miss is that the flavours are especially intense. If you’re eating vegan raw food, you tend to see the same ingredients crop up over and over again, combined in different ways to make different meals.
I happen to love some flavours that you see again and again in raw foods, such as cacao powder, apples, bananas, almonds, and nutritional yeast flakes. But other flavours frequently crop up in raw foods which I do not enjoy: coconut, cilantro, and avocado, to name a few. It’s easy to be turned off of raw food if you’re exposed to the flavours you strongly dislike – just like any other kind of cuisine. You just have to find the right flavours that work for you!
I also find that getting together with a bunch of people who are so passionate is very inspiring and motivating. I want to try practicing yoga every day for a week – yes, me, the person who doesn’t do yoga because I get bored quickly and I don’t “feel the burn”, actually wants to try doing it regularly – starting today! I’m taking baby steps with just doing a week to begin. I’m also planning on doing three days of eating 100% raw, starting today. Clean out the system a little! We’ll see how it goes. Here’s hoping I last at least one day 😉
Is your city very health-focused? Do you like yoga? Have you been to a potluck lately? What’s your favourite dish to bring (regardless if it’s raw, cooked, vegan, vegetarian, meat-based, or other!)? Share in the comments!
I’ve made a similar version of those chocolate balls and they are delicious!
Despite its reputation, my city (Memphis) is becoming a much more health-focused place to live with walk-bike issues getting lots of much-needed attention. I’m enjoying getting involved in making some of the changes come to life!
That’s wonderful that walking and biking are becoming more prominent! That’s what I really miss about living in Holland.
Kentucky as a whole has one of the least healthy populations in the US, and it’s not changing for the better.
I know I nag about yoga, but you’re not supposed to feel the burn. Unlike cardio and strength training, yoga is not about pushing your body farther bit by bit. (In my opinion) yoga’s about listening very carefully to every part of your body in each posture. (Can’t survive without yoga. ; ) Can you tell?)
We do potluck at work about once a month. I nearly always bring dessert, and have convinced everybody that yes, cookies need whole wheat flour! We have two vegetarians, and sometimes I bring my beans-only chili. I never bring vegetables, because I’m the only one who wants vegetables plain with a dash of salt, so I don’t have any recipes for Veg Messed Up with Lotsa Stuff.
Mary Anne in Kentucky
🙂 I know that you’re not SUPPOSED to feel the burn in yoga – it’s just tough for me to wrap my mind around it! But I’m getting there.
I love that you have monthly potlucks at your work. Too bad that no one else wants the plain veggies – if I were there, I’d eat your plain veggies with you!
I love this: “it wasn’t about the raw food so much as building a community of healthy people.” That is awesome! I wish I could come to your potluck:) Plus: I heart yoga. I’d fit right in!
Fabulous! I wish I could be at the next one! I’ll bring a mixed bean salad 🙂
How wonderful!!!!!! So much fun to get people together in a healthy way! And those chocolate balls sound delish!
We are pretty healthy here in southern CA due to “the entertainment industry” but there are still a lot of unhealthy people too. I am not really a yoga person.. just have not done it but nothing against it.. I am sure I will try some day.
Keep trying different things Sagan & like life, things change, we change & we can always change what we are doing if it is not working for us!
Keep enjoying!
URL test 🙂
I love potlucks and always try and use a new recipe – I usually do desserts that I’ve been wanting to try but don’t want to keep in the house for just the hubby and I to devour 🙂
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