For the second year in a row, I catered Wine & Words, a fundraising event for the Northern Colorado Writers. I love this event and I definitely love showing people that vegan food is delicious! You’ve seen the gluten-free & vegan cupcakes and I’m excited to show you what else I made (and about 95% organic, too!)
Quinoa Salad
I cooked 2 cups of quinoa in 2-1/2 cups of vegetable broth. I let it cool in the fridge for a day, then added 1 chopped up cucumber, two chopped tomatoes, a chopped red onion, 1 cup of chopped parsley, and a cup of toasted pinenuts. In a small bowl, I combined 3 Tbs of ume plum vinegar with 2 Tbs of olive oil, 1 tsp of salt, 1/2 tsp of black pepper, then mixed it into the salad. Easy!
Field Roast-Stuffed Mushrooms
These were gone in minutes! I cooked up a diced green pepper with a small chopped onion and added four ground up Field Roast sausages, Italian flavor. I could make the stuffing a day ahead, so that helped out. I then used about 60 mushrooms and lightly sauteed them in Earth Balance and garlic. Don’t cook too much, just enough to soften them up. Just before the event, I heated up the stuffing in a pan on the stove and stuffed the mushrooms.
Pesto Potato Bread Sandwiches
I LOVE this bread for these finger sandwiches. The recipe makes two loaves, so I made two different kinds of sandwiches. I did, however, use a seasoned cream cheese (Tofutti mixed with Good Seasoning dressing mix) on both. On one, I had cucumbers, tomatoes and fresh basil. On the other, I used roasted red peppers and avocados.
Fruit Cones
I figured this was a great way to eat fruit! I dipped the tops of ice cream cones in melted chocolate, then poured sprinkles around the top. Initially, I was going to fill them with fruit to serve, but it made more sense to let guests do it. That way, they can be picky about what fruit they want, and then the fruit wouldn’t make the cones soggy. I also recommend spooning a bit of chocolate into the bottom of the cone for added chocolate goodness!
I also made a huge batch (not enough!) of Avocado Bruschetta and served them with tortilla scoops and gluten-free crackers. The Spinach Dip was also a hit and I served it with cut up peppers, cucumbers, and celery. Olives and a green salad rounded it out and made for a fabulous event!
oh my gosh those fruit cones are so creative! i love that idea — so fun! and what delicious looking dishes! yum!
Thanks! I wish I had gotten a picture of one filled with fruit…I totally forgot!
Those fruit cones are such a good idea! I great way to get a little sweetness paired with some healthy fruit. Everything else looks great too…but I’m always looking at the desserts first 🙂
Amazing! Do you ever cater vegan weddings? Since catering is such a local business, I wonder if you could help non-vegan caterers plan for (or even, if the couple’s budget allows, fly in and help prepare) them? At the very least (if you haven’t done so already), see if you can be added to cruelty-free catering registries. Rose Petals Vegan Weddings has a good one at http://www.rosepedalsveganweddings.com/vegan-vendors/vegan-catering-food-drink/
I hadn’t thought about catering weddings, but that would definitely be so much fun! I’d also be happy just to consult with caterers about vegan food—definitely something I’m going to think about.
April, once again, you outdid yourself. I was bummed that quite a lot of the food was gone by the time I arrived. But everything I sampled was delicious, and I appreciated the gluten-free offerings! I’m already looking forward to your next event, hint hint 🙂
What a spread! I’m going to have to try those stuffed mushrooms 🙂
I tasted every single thing on that table and all of it was delicious. You did a great job, April.
Oh my goodness, everything here looks utterly delicious. The field roast mushrooms are calling my name. Thank you for sharing this with me. I wish I could have been there.
Hi! Now that’s a good looking spread. Lucky guests 🙂