The grass is poking through the snow, the trees are starting to bud, the sun is showing its warm face more often, and these vibes are making us want to come out and celebrate too!
Spring is a great time to celebrate with family and friends with a potluck party! With each guest bringing a different dish to share, it is a cost effective (and labor effective!) way to entertain, and it can very easily turn into a celebration of food. The more, the merrier! However, it may be wise to designate certain categories of dishes to each of your guests to allow for a properly configured dinner. Potluck categories to delegate to your guests can include appetizers, snacks, salads, main dishes, sides, drinks, and desserts.
You can even host a themed potluck, wherein everyone brings a dish that fits with the potluck’s theme. Here are a few fun themes for your next potluck party:
Some of my favorite potluck dishes to make include homemade macaroni and cheese, devilled eggs, pasta salad, Caesar salad, chilli, pulled pork, lasagna, shepherd’s pie, spinach dip, layered salad, meatballs, pierogis, and homemade pie – and obviously any dessert that you might be famous for is a fantastic choice!
Here are a couple of my family heirloom recipes that are super easy and very affordable potluck favorites:
Baba Jean’s Baked Pierogi Casserole
1 bag of frozen cheddar cheese pierogis (unless you make your own!)
1 small container of whipping cream
1 small onion, chopped
2 tbsp butter
Boil your pierogis as per package instructions. While your pierogis are cooking, melt the butter in a medium-sized frying pan. Add onions, and sauté for three minutes. Add the whipping cream. Lower the heat to medium-low, stirring occasionally until the whipping cream starts to bubble.
Place the boiled pierogis in a casserole dish, and pour the whipping cream and onion mixture evenly overtop. Bake at 350oF for 20 minutes.
Quick & Easy Devilled Eggs
12 hard-boiled eggs
1/2 cup mayo
2 tbsp yellow mustard
2 tsp pickle juice
salt and pepper (to taste)
paprika
There are a few tips to get easy-to-peel hard-boiled eggs. First, do not put your eggs in the water until the water is boiling (and make sure to lower them in the water gently). Once the eggs are in the water, lower the heat and simmer the eggs for 13 minutes. Immediately put the cooked eggs into an ice bath for five minutes, after which they will be cool to the touch. Then, tap the cooled eggs several times on the countertop prior to commencing peeling. These tips will help the shell peel off easier, without a chunk of egg being stuck to the shell. Cut the eggs in half length-wise and remove the yolks. Mix the yolks with the remaining ingredients (except for the paprika) and insert into a piping bag. Get creative piping the egg mixture into the egg halves! Sprinkle with paprika and refrigerate.
Don’t want to cook? No problem! Pick up a sweet or savory pie from Pie Junkie (five locations in Calgary). The Italian Centre Shop (located at 9919 Fairmount Drive SE) has their own line of party-size meals to go called “Massimo’s To-Go.” You can pick up a party-sized tray of meatballs, lasagna, manicotti, penne, ravioli, tortellini, spaghetti, Greek salad, Caesar salad, and more. And one of my personal favorites? The Empanada Queen (located at 4 – 4412 Manilla Road SE, and in the Calgary Farmers Market South) has take-and-bake frozen empanadas (including four vegan versions), or you can pre-order custom empanadas (either fried or baked) and choose from cocktail-sized or bite-sized versions if you prefer. Empanadas are a perfect potluck dish. It doesn’t get any easier than these options!
And don’t forget the decorations! It’s spring, so make your table and dining space bright and cheerful. Fresh and colorful floral arrangements and brightly colored butterfly decorations are perfect for a spring fling! Or if you’ve given your potluck a theme, decorate according to the theme. Dollar stores are a budget-friendly location to pick your themed decorations, and grabbing a few fresh bouquets while picking up your recipe ingredients at the grocery store will save you some valuable time.
Did you know that the term “potluck” dates back to the 16th century, wherein unexpected guests would eat whatever was available in the host’s pot (aka the “luck of the pot”)?
Ask your guests to bring leftover containers, as there will most definitely be plenty of leftovers for lunch the next day for everyone! And, most importantly, don’t forget to have fun… potlucks are meant to be easy on the host and a way for everyone to get creative and let loose!
Jennifer is a local foodie with a passion for food writing. Find more of her food writing on her Facebook page: For The Love of Food YYC.
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