Bringing food to a potluck can take us all out of our comfort zone. We’re left without our own oven, our favorite knife, or our counter space. Timing a dish perfectly in someone else’s kitchen can feel like a high wire act.
So how do you make it work? The key is in eliminating the element of surprise. Start with a dish that doesn’t need to be cooked on arrival. In my book Bring It: Tried and True Recipes for Potlucks and Casual Entertaining I tried to find ways to keep it simple and eliminate dishes that needed to be served piping hot. Now I almost never bring a dish that needs any additional help on arrival – it’s just not worth it. With room temperature dishes you can walk into a party with as much ease as the person who brought a bottle of wine.
Once the flavors are chosen, think through the transportation. Just because a dish doesn’t need to be put back on the heat doesn’t mean it can get from point A to B without a little bit of attention to detail. The ultimate no-cook dish is a salad, but even a salad can start to look a little sad if it has sat too long in its dressing. When taking items like salads, or other dishes with an added sauce, try to keep them separated until you arrive. It will save the dish from wilting and it will eliminate the pool of sauce that clings to the bottom once it has been out too long. A quick toss on arrival will keep everything looking fresh and as though it was made moments before. Similarly, if you bring a dish that doesn’t have a sauce but can still be fluffed up, like a rice or grain dish, make sure to give it a stir on arrival. Otherwise, for any other kind of dish, just keep your dish covered until you are ready to serve so it stays looking as ready-made as possible.
Make sure also to travel with whatever extra tools you need. You might show up and the host may not have the right knife to cut your quiche or the right spoons to serve your salad. Don’t take for granted that they will have what you are looking for. Since you won’t be asking the host for any oven space or fridge space you’ll make yourself extra easy by being totally self-contained on arrival.
Lastly, you need to focus on presentation – and in many ways it is easier than a piping hot dish. Often keeping a bit of chopped herbs or parsley in a separate resealable bag that can be sprinkled over the top right before serving can make a world of difference. Make sure to also think about color – a grain dish might taste great, but a whole lot of brown doesn’t make your dish the go-to item. Without the wafting smells coming from the oven you’ll need to have guests eat with their eyes before digging in. So make sure you’ve livened up whatever you’re making with enough color and texture before bringing it out.
As long as you’ve got the flavor, transportation plan and presentation down, a room temperature dish can be the solution to any gathering. Save yourself the headache of reheating and start with a plan to keep it as easy as possible.
Asparagus and Goat Cheese Tart
Reprinted with permission from BRING IT! © 2018 by Ali Rosen, Running Press
No matter who your audience is, this recipe will be a winner. My own vegetable-hating brother declared this one of his favorite recipes after initially being very skeptical. There’s something about puff pastry that makes everyone happy. The combination of cheese and rosemary makes the asparagus more approachable to those less veggie inclined, and for those who live for vegetables, this dish is a delicious roasted treat.
Ingredients
- •340 grams* (12 ounces) puff pastry dough
- •454 grams (1 pound) asparagus, ends trimmed
- •118 m (½ cup) crumbled goat cheese
- •5 ml (1 teaspoon) salt
- •15 ml (1 tablespoon) rosemary, finely diced
- •59 ml (¼ cup) chopped spring onions (about 3 onions)
* Metric conversions by The Cook’s Cook
Preparation
Preheat the oven to 177°C (350°F).
On a sheet pan lined with parchment paper (or lightly oiled if that is easier for you), spread out the puff pastry dough into a flat rectangle. Line up the asparagus spears side by side, leaving a bit of space on all the outer edges. Sprinkle the goat cheese, salt, rosemary, and spring onions on top. Fold the sides of the pastry dough over the asparagus (it shouldn’t come so far as to cover more than one asparagus).
Place in the oven and cook for 30 to 40 minutes, or until you see the puff pastry browning and the asparagus has cooked.
HOW TO BRING IT
This dish can be served hot right out of the oven, or it can wait a whole day. If you are serving later, make sure to let it cool before wrapping in plastic wrap or aluminum foil so it does not continue to cook from trapped steam. Do not cut the tart until you are ready to serve.
Pistachio and Anchovy Pasta
Reprinted with permission from BRING IT! © 2018 by Ali Rosen, Running Press
Sometimes the best meals happen when you least expect it. My husband and I spent a few weeks in Italy one summer, with almost every day packed with reservations for meals. But our favorite dish came when we stopped in the town of Siena for a break during a drive through the countryside. Ready to eat, we sat down at the first restaurant that had outdoor seating and accepted that it was going to be a simple, quick meal. How wrong we were. We ordered a pasta that combined anchovies with pistachios, and suddenly our world opened to a whole new flavor. When I came home, it was the first recipe I tried to muster up in my American kitchen. It’s a surprising flavor that will stick with you long after you’ve put your fork down.
Ingredients
- •227 grams* (8 ounces) orecchiette or other small pasta
- •237 ml (1 cup) unsalted shelled pistachios
- •60 ml (4 tablespoons) extra-virgin olive oil
- •57 grams (2-ounce) jar or tin of anchovies
- •5 ml (1 teaspoon) crushed red pepper flakes
- •118 ml (½ cup) freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- •118 ml (½ cup) coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley
- •Salt to taste
*Metric conversions by The Cook’s Cook
Preparation
Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook for 8 minutes or until the pasta is cooked but still a bit al dente.
While the pasta is cooking, combine the pistachios, olive oil, and anchovies in a blender until almost smooth but with still just a little bit of texture. Combine the blended mixture with the red pepper flakes, Parmesan cheese, and parsley in a large serving bowl, stirring to make a sauce.
Drain the pasta and immediately combine with the sauce. Add salt to taste.
HOW TO BRING IT
This dish can be served immediately or it can be gently reheated in an oven. Try not to add too much heat too fast or the cheese will lose its texture and the pasta could overcook. It also does fine at room temperature if needed.
Zesty Green Beans with Chives
Reprinted with permission from BRING IT! © 2018 by Ali Rosen, Running Press
Feeding friends and neighbors shouldn’t feel intimidating. Complicated is not always the better choice if you want to impress. The only real goal is to make something delicious. That’s the key with this side dish. It’s so simple it may seem like you’re hardly even cooking, but the zing you get from the zest and chives makes it feel special.
Ingredients
- •2 lemons
- •454 grams* (1 pound) green beans, trimmed
- •60 ml (¼ cup) chopped chives
- •15 ml (1 tablespoon) extra-virgin olive oil
- •2 garlic cloves, minced
- •60 ml (¼ cup) blanched slivered almonds
- •5 ml (1 teaspoon) red pepper flakes
- •Dash of salt
*Metric conversions by The Cook’s Cook
Preparation
Zest both lemons, making sure to avoid the white pith. Set the zest aside and juice 1 of the lemons. You should have approximately ¼ cup of lemon juice and 1 tablespoon of zest, but it can be a little more or less. 2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and create an ice water bath by filling a large bowl with ice and water. Cook the green beans in the boiling water until they are just cooked but still crisp, approximately 4 minutes. Quickly drain them and submerge them in the ice bath (or run under cold tap water) until they have completely cooled. Drain to remove any liquid and add the chives, olive oil, garlic cloves, almonds, red pepper flakes, and salt and toss together. Add the lemon zest and juice just before serving. HOW TO BRING IT This is another one of those easy-to-prepare gold mines that does well either warm or at room temperature. The key to this dish is the crispiness of the green beans. If you prefer to reheat, cook the green beans a minute or so less when you blanch them. Store the lemon juice and zest separately from the beans, and toss together just before serving.