"bring a dish" parties

JoJoDoerr
JoJoDoerr Posts: 173 Member
edited November 12 in Food and Nutrition
Hubby and I have a party to go to in a couple weeks and I am really struggling with what dish or dishes to take. It can be anything from finger foods to entree and I just can't come to a decision. I just know I want it to be healthy!

What do you take to "bring a dish" parties?

Replies

  • epursey
    epursey Posts: 36 Member
    Stuffed mushrooms, fruit salad and orzo salad are my usually dishes.

    Orzo Salad
    3 cups cooked orzo

    While pasta is hot add 2 T balsamic vinegar. Stir well and add 2-3 T olive oil, stir. Add 2 cloves garlic minced, 1 cup thawed peas, 1/2 cup feta cheese. chill.

    This is from memory so as you're making it you can add more or less. I've added fresh parsley, celery and green pepper before to. The one thing I do recommend is making sure all the balsamic vinegar absorbs into the pasta. If you add cheese to early not only will it melt but it will also turn brown from the vinegar.

    Hope this helps.
  • OnMyWeigh464
    OnMyWeigh464 Posts: 447 Member
    I have this aweseome oriental salad I love bringing. It makes ALOT and is pretty inexpensive to make.
  • kbmnurse
    kbmnurse Posts: 2,484 Member
    fruit or shrimp platter
  • RillSoji
    RillSoji Posts: 376 Member
    This one is always a hit with my friends:

    Athens Vegetable Medley
    1 cup Green Beans
    ½ bunch Asparagus
    1 medium Zucchini, sliced into sticks
    2 Garlic Cloves, minced
    ½ can White Beans, rinsed
    ½ cup Grape/Cherry Tomatoes
    1 Tbl Olive Oil
    Pinch of Oregano, Salt, Pepper, Lemon Juice
    ¼ cup Olives, any kind
    ¼ cup Feta, crumbled

    Preheat oven to 425° F. Toss together green beans, asparagus, zucchini, garlic, beans, tomatoes, oil and seasonings. Bake for 15 minutes. Place all ingredients in a large bowl and toss to combine.


    And this one too:

    Chinese Chicken Salad
    12oz bag Broccoli Slaw Mix
    1 Chicken Breast
    1 can Water Chestnuts
    1 cup Snow Peas
    1 can Mandarin Oranges
    2 Green Onions
    2 Tbl Olive Oil
    2 Tbl Rice Wine Vinegar
    ½ Tbl Soy Sauce
    ½ Tbl Seasame Oil
    2 tsp Sugar

    Place the chicken breast on a well oiled indoor appliance grill. Cook for 6-8 minutes. When done, let the chicken rest for 3 minutes then dice. Drain the water chestnuts and oranges. Chop the snow peas and green onions. In a large bowl, toss together the broccoli slaw, chicken, chestnuts, snow peas, oranges and green onions. In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, vinegar, soy sauce, seasame oil and sugar. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss.
  • ColCul
    ColCul Posts: 53
    Sushi
    Shrimp
    Black bean dip or hummus with toasted pita
    bean salad
    salad with my own dressing

    Something that I know that it is healthy and I can eat and enjoy it.
  • nikkirosem
    nikkirosem Posts: 63 Member
    I do some fruit kabobs.
  • mfoster1019
    mfoster1019 Posts: 152 Member
    veggie platter
    skinny taco dip (from skinnytaste.com) w/ baked tostitos chips
    fruit tray
    baked tostitos and salsa
  • tnrunningnurse
    tnrunningnurse Posts: 549 Member
    I take fruit salad, or a veggie tray (I bring a lowfat dressing or hummus to go with the traditional ranch), homade salsa with baked chips and for main dish I make a 5 bean chili with ground turkey.
  • katekrise
    katekrise Posts: 178 Member
    Fruit salad
  • maybethistime70
    maybethistime70 Posts: 65
    it's great to try for healthy options, however, I think it is more important to watch portion control...even if you snack on the not so healthy stuff, if you monitor your portions you should be fine. :)
  • ArtGeek22
    ArtGeek22 Posts: 1,429 Member
    check out this blog for many yummy desert related stuff (all healthy!!!) Hope I helped :smile:

    chocolatecoveredkatie.com


    Keep Calm and Carry On,
    Anna
  • ljoyp
    ljoyp Posts: 1 Member
    You can bring a fruit platter Cut up srawberries, apples, etc... You can make a fruit dip to go with it. You can mix 8 oz cream cheese and the smaller container of Marshmellow Creme together. Very yummy. I always add a little Cool Whip to get the consistency I like.
  • Moonblood
    Moonblood Posts: 199 Member
    I usually bring vegetable trays with homemade dip!
  • NaiaNZ
    NaiaNZ Posts: 72 Member
    I take a Fruit Platter with Frozen Yoghurt, and/or a yummy Salad!

    That way you can pile your plate up with Salad and just have a little of the 'Naughty Foods' that other people have bought without missing out completely, or leaving hungry.
    Everyone LOVES fresh fruit after a meal, pair it with a yummy frozen yoghurt and you're everyones best friend! Healthy and delicious!
  • Annmarie49
    Annmarie49 Posts: 84
    skinnytaste.com have some fabulous ideas. just watch your portions tho when you get there. you might bring something healthy/low carb/fat/calorie etc but others will produce our 'weakness's' and we have to monitor restraint or allow for it within our daily/weekly allocation!!!! just go and enjoy, plan, plan, plan, plan................................keep on track or get back onto as soon afterwards!!! we can do this:ohwell:
  • cramernh
    cramernh Posts: 3,335 Member
    Italian Pasta skewers and a homemade vinaigrette on the side..

    Each skewer has cubed provolone, cubed sopressata, cubed prosciutto, red/yellow/orange pepper chunks, tortelini, cherry tomato. I get the extra long skewers so I can do multiple layers... They are very colorful and eye-appealing.

    The vinaigrette is olive oil, white vinegar, grainy mustard, fresh zest and juice of lemon, garlic, fresh basil, oregano, thyme and rosemary....
  • meshashesha2012
    meshashesha2012 Posts: 8,329 Member
    the dishes i tend to bring one of the following

    - meatballs made with turkey, mushrooms and cannellini beans

    - homemade brownies with rasberry topping (these arent remotely healthy, but i dont eat them anymore anyway because of the gluten)

    - layer dip with chicken, black beans, fresh salsa, and light cheddar cheese. i also bring a spruced up (with seasoning) plin no fat yogurt to use as sour creme. combine that with some soy and flaxseed tortillas from trader joe's and it's pretty healthy.

    - if it's a grilling party, you can make your own veggie+ chicken kabobs, or grilled red peppers with laughing cow and feta cheese inside is delicious and very low cal. just wrap them in tin foil before putting on the grill
  • cjaharmon
    cjaharmon Posts: 46 Member
    I always take something I can eat and not feel guilty. We do a sibling dinner get together with his family once a month and I love them but they all eat really bad foods and lots of it....think banana pudding is a pretty safe food...well not the way she makes it! Anyway I always take a salad or something similar that I love that will be a safe food for me.
  • JoJoDoerr
    JoJoDoerr Posts: 173 Member
    Italian Pasta skewers and a homemade vinaigrette on the side..

    Each skewer has cubed provolone, cubed sopressata, cubed prosciutto, red/yellow/orange pepper chunks, tortelini, cherry tomato. I get the extra long skewers so I can do multiple layers... They are very colorful and eye-appealing.

    The vinaigrette is olive oil, white vinegar, grainy mustard, fresh zest and juice of lemon, garlic, fresh basil, oregano, thyme and rosemary....

    This sounds amazing! I may try this at home too...lol
  • JenChis22
    JenChis22 Posts: 25
    I do
    fruit or veggie platters with a greek yogurt dip
    various salads (bean, broccoli, fruit, greens, etc)
    turkey chili
    grilled shrip
    turkey bacon wrapped scallops
    salmon
  • meredithmccandless
    meredithmccandless Posts: 11
    hummus with carrots and cukes and olives
    spicy white beans (navy or other beans, red pepper flakes, olive oil, lemon juice, salt, pepper, italian herbs) with bread
    nuts & dried fruit (almonds, mango, cashew, cranberries, apricot, etc)

    mmmmmm
  • modernmom70
    modernmom70 Posts: 373 Member
    Mini Boccaccini, Fresh Basil and Grape/Cherry tomatoes on toothpicks with balasamic dressing drizzled. Soooo Yum!
  • kristelpoole
    kristelpoole Posts: 440 Member
    Some of the recent things I've brought...

    Veggie Chili

    Lemongrass Pea and Napa Slaw http://stirringthingsupblog.com/2011/11/18/lemongrass-pea-and-napa-slaw/

    Deep-Dish Cookie Pie from www.chocolatecoveredkatie.com

    Deviled Eggs (made with greek yogurt instead of mayo)

    Creamy Polenta with almond milk and topped with low-fat wild mushroom ragout
  • cramernh
    cramernh Posts: 3,335 Member
    Italian Pasta skewers and a homemade vinaigrette on the side..

    Each skewer has cubed provolone, cubed sopressata, cubed prosciutto, red/yellow/orange pepper chunks, tortelini, cherry tomato. I get the extra long skewers so I can do multiple layers... They are very colorful and eye-appealing.

    The vinaigrette is olive oil, white vinegar, grainy mustard, fresh zest and juice of lemon, garlic, fresh basil, oregano, thyme and rosemary....

    This sounds amazing! I may try this at home too...lol

    Friends of mine were doing a Wine-tasting party with their homemade creations and they were featuring some italian reds and whites - so I thought to myself a different twist on a tortellini salad (I cant eat pasta but, I love making these for anyone). I will also add some red onion, I meant to add that to the list but realized after I posted.

    Basically its pasta salad on a skewer... I have these wonderful 2oz ramekins that people can put their dressing in (so you can avoid using the main bowl for dipping), people can dip their skewers into their own ramekin of homemade dressing.

    Ive done raviolini skewers with a variety of cubed cheeses, roma tomatoes, basil leaves, broccoli, prosciutto and/or shrimp and baby bella mushrooms on a skewer and did a cheese fondue... BIG HIT with folks.

    Another popular dish I make is Czechoslovakian Meatballs... a really savory meatball (onion, gahhhhhhlic, worcestershire sauce and basic ingredients) made with ground beef and pork. The gravy is a tomato-paprikash concoction that has gahhhhhlic, caramelized onions, sauteed mushrooms, sour cream, neufchatel, fresh chicken stock - and a cornstarch slurry to thicken it up.... Put your cooked meatballs in the gravy and grab some jumbo skewers and start poking for them... BIG HIT with the guys because it really goes great with sauerkraut and a great beer to wash it down.
  • keiko
    keiko Posts: 2,919 Member
    Italian Pasta skewers and a homemade vinaigrette on the side..

    Each skewer has cubed provolone, cubed sopressata, cubed prosciutto, red/yellow/orange pepper chunks, tortelini, cherry tomato. I get the extra long skewers so I can do multiple layers... They are very colorful and eye-appealing.

    The vinaigrette is olive oil, white vinegar, grainy mustard, fresh zest and juice of lemon, garlic, fresh basil, oregano, thyme and rosemary....

    This sounds amazing! I may try this at home too...lol

    Friends of mine were doing a Wine-tasting party with their homemade creations and they were featuring some italian reds and whites - so I thought to myself a different twist on a tortellini salad (I cant eat pasta but, I love making these for anyone). I will also add some red onion, I meant to add that to the list but realized after I posted.

    Basically its pasta salad on a skewer... I have these wonderful 2oz ramekins that people can put their dressing in (so you can avoid using the main bowl for dipping), people can dip their skewers into their own ramekin of homemade dressing.

    Ive done raviolini skewers with a variety of cubed cheeses, roma tomatoes, basil leaves, broccoli, prosciutto and/or shrimp and baby bella mushrooms on a skewer and did a cheese fondue... BIG HIT with folks.

    Another popular dish I make is Czechoslovakian Meatballs... a really savory meatball (onion, gahhhhhhlic, worcestershire sauce and basic ingredients) made with ground beef and pork. The gravy is a tomato-paprikash concoction that has gahhhhhlic, caramelized onions, sauteed mushrooms, sour cream, neufchatel, fresh chicken stock - and a cornstarch slurry to thicken it up.... Put your cooked meatballs in the gravy and grab some jumbo skewers and start poking for them... BIG HIT with the guys because it really goes great with sauerkraut and a great beer to wash it down.

    These meatballs sound delicious! Can you share a recipe?
  • dsagaties1963
    dsagaties1963 Posts: 43
    bump
  • sherry9300
    sherry9300 Posts: 149 Member
    We do a monthly potluck at work that's usually to die for, but most of us are on MFP right now. The theme this last month was pizza potluck, so all we needed was sides and desserts. I brought a big green salad thinking just the dieting people would bother with it. The whole thing was gone! How simple...never thought of something that easy to bring.
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