Surviving Summer Gatherings
Where everyone is determined to feed you
One of the problems with going whole food plant-based is dealing with loving people who want to feed you. It took us more than a year to figure out how to feed ourselves, folks. While their efforts are sweet and kind, we really feel people should practice eating this way for a while before offering to feed others.
There’s an art to it, and a learning curve to it. You start out thinking you’re doing it perfectly, and then as you go along you figure out all the things you weren’t really doing at all, or were doing and shouldn’t have been, and you improve bit by bit, and you get better and better. Shoot, I’ve had to tweak and polish most of this site’s earliest recipes to get the cheats out.
And the problem with knowing all of the above is that you can’t really tell it to others, and even if you do, they don’t accept it.
So here are some tips to deal with it.
Even though they won’t listen, tell the hosts there’s no need to feed you, that you don’t expect them to learn a complicated lifestyle and cooking methods overnight, and that you are used to gatherings with food you don’t eat, and you always fill up ahead of time.
Always bring a WFPB dish or two to share and make them spectacular. Things that tend to blow away crowds are my potato salad, crock pot chili, marinated portobello stir fry, carrot dogs, carrot cake, roasted veggies (below,) and these fantastic chocolate cookies.
Also always bring a main dish for yourself, such as a Real Veggies brand sweet potato burger or some pre-soaked carrot dogs, with your own whole grain, oil-free buns. You can find a clean spot on the grill or use tin foil to keep the meat germs off your food, and throw your stuff right on there.
That’s assuming, of course, that the grill master will allow you near the grill. If they want to cook it for you, that still works. Ask them flip the patties every two minutes for a total of 8 to 10 minutes, and ask them to use a separate spatula. (That’s probably sufficient fussiness to get them to step back and let you do it yourself.)
Alternatively, if you bring your burgers and dogs pre-cooked, you could just warm them up on the grill, safely foil-wrapped.
Last time I brought carrot dogs my grandson the cop had one, and later asked for the recipe. So bring extras!Seriously, eat before you leave home. There are going to be a hundred snacks you don’t want, and it’ll be harder to avoid them if you arrive starving. You can also bring some munchie snacks of your own, like mixed oil-free, salt-free nuts or some homemade granola, or raisins or marinated tofu bites, etc.
Bring sweet corn for one and all. Sweet corn can be wrapped and grilled and is a perfect fit at a family cookout that doesn’t even make you seem weird (until you skip the butter and or buttery spread and eat it with just a little salt and pepper. My hubs doesn’t even use those!) I’ve read that some don’t shuck the corn, but wrap in tin foil and cook it right in the husks, peeling only when it’s done. I keep meaning to try this and always forget until after I’m finished shucking. This year for sure. Local sweet corn is only a few weeks away!
All the same, despite all your efforts, you’re going to attend a gathering at some point where some beloved and well-meaning person is going to present you with some undercooked, oil-soaked tofu that they prepared just for you. Smile as if it’s a clay ashtray or macaroni art from your child, because it’s offered with just as much love. Eat a bite or two, it won’t kill you. Make yummy noises. Be kind and be grateful. And when you go home, take a moment to appreciate having people in your life who love you so much they’d make such an effort.
5 years ago, every meal was a challenge
I remember how hard it seemed at the beginning, looking up recipes, and hunting down ingredients, and getting used to new ways of cooking, without oil or margarine or cooking spray.
It’s so much easier now, and getting easier all the time. For lunch Friday I just opened the fridge and pulled out every leftover from each meal earlier in the week. I had some lovely seasoned rice, a small amount of cooked peppers & onions, a handful of cooked spinach, some raw greens, some cooked sweet corn, and a handful of cooked diced sweet potato. It seems there’s always drips and drabs leftover from dinner, and I dislike food waste.
So I just threw it all together, and added a can of mushrooms, a can of tomatoes, and a handful of nutritional yeast. Simmered it up and got enough for two lunches plus a scoop for the dog. (I pick out the mushrooms and onions before she gets it. Those aren’t good for dogs, I’ve been told.)
For dinner tonight, I’m roasting all the raw broccoli and cauliflower left in the fridge (below.) I’m slicing up the leftover potatoes I cooked at the beginning of the week. I’ll spread them on a baking sheet lined with a silicone mat, season them up with some grated onion, garlic powder, black pepper, maybe a dash of rosemary, and pop them into the oven to brown.
I’ve grown very easy and relaxed about meals. Whole plant foods have become our new normal. However, I still think a day ahead about dinners, so tofu or mushrooms can marinate overnight, and there’s time to soak the cashews if I’m making a spread or dressing. Usually, I know tonight what I’ll make for dinner tomorrow night.
When I don’t know, and I’m out of time: Tacos!
If you’re struggling…
Reach out. Email me, leave a comment, or find me on Bluesky or Facebook.
About those Roasted Vegetables
1 head fresh broccoli
1 head fresh cauliflower
4 medium carrots
True aged balsamic vinegar
Fresh ground pepper
Just cut the broccoli and cauliflower into florets as big as you want to eat. The smaller they are, the faster they’ll cook. Peel the carrots and cut into chunks a couple of inches long each. Arrange on a cookie sheet atop a silicone mat and cover tightly with aluminum foil.
Bake at 400º for about 20 minutes until they are a bit less than fork-tender. You want them still to have a crispness in the center.
Remove aluminum foil.
Return to the oven and put the veggies back in for just 5 more minutes uncovered, to get a little bit of browning.
Scatter with fresh ground pepper. Drizzle with true aged balsamic, which should be thick and sweet. If you don’t have any, use a balsamic glaze. Zig-zag drizzle this over the veggies, not too much.
Serve.
Love this! Thanks. I'm going to make your crock pot chili soon.