Favorite Potluck Recipes for Fall and Winter Potlatches

The word Potluck has several eytomyologies, including potlatch from a Pacific northwest native American tribal dialect that means" bring your best gift to share." Wikipedia has this interesting tidbit of information about the origin and meaning of the word potlatch.

"The potlatch is a festival or ceremony practiced among Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast. At these gatherings a family or hereditary leader hosts guests in their family's house and hold a feast for their guests. The main purpose of the potlatch is the re-distribution and reciprocity of wealth."

In our region of Indiana, pot luck dinners almost always mean church suppers and since religious folks try to stay away from drinking and drugs..that leaves food as their favorite addiction! Pot luck dinners and church suppers offer cooks an opportunity to show off their favorite dishes. I have five favorite pot luck recipes that always bring rave reviews from the diners.

Colcannon

Colcannon is a family recipe that makes a great pot luck side dish. It's simple, quick to prepare and travels to the dinner well. It can be held without losing it's quality and best of all, everyone loves it!

How to make a 9 by 13 casserole dish or baking pan full of Colcannon

Clean 8 large baking potatoes, peel and cut into medium dice. Place in pot and boil till tender with salt in the water. While the potatoes are cooking, chop 1 large onion and 1 head of cabbage. Saute onion and cabbage in 3 T. olive oil until cabbage and onion are tender, add salt and pepper to taste.

When potatoes are finished cooking, mash them with ½ c. cream and ½ c. butter. Mix the cooked cabbage and onion and the potatoes into one big bowl and spread into a 9 by 13 pan. Sprinkle 1 c. shredded cheddar cheese over the top of the potatoes and cabbage and bake for about 30 minutes in a 350 oven.

Chicken Tetrazzini

Chicken always makes a good main dish for a potluck dinner and this recipe makes a large amount of food so that the entire crowd can have a taste.

How to make a 10 x 15 x 3 inch pan of Chicken Tetrazzini

Saute 4 large boneless skinless chicken breast halves in 2 T. olive oil and 2 T. butter. Sprinkle the chicken breast with a mixture of ½ t. seasoned salt, 1 t. coarse pepper, and 1 t. paprika. Brown in butter olive oil mixture on both sides till browned and cooked through, about 10 to 15 minutes. Remove chicken from skillet and cool.

Bring a pot of 3 quarts of water to boil. Add 1 pound of linguine or spaghetti. Salt water and cook pasta till el dente tender.

While chicken was cooking, chop 1 large onion, 2 stalks of celery and about 3 garlic cloves, minced fine. Saute the vegetables in the garlic butter mix till tender then add 2 cups of garlic and 2 cups of chicken broth. Make a roux of 2 T. of melted butter and 2 T. of flour, whisk into chicken broth sauce and using whisk, stir until slightly thickened, add ½ Parmesan cheese.

Chop the cool chicken breasts into medium chunks and stir into sauce. Add the sauce and chicken mixture to the pot of drained pasta. Stir 2 cups of shredded fine cheddar cheese into mixture. Stir and pour entire mixture into large baking dish that has been butttered. Sprinkle 1 cup of cheddar cheese onto top of dish. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes till browned and melted through.

Vegetarian Chop Salad

It's often hard for vegetarians to find food they can eat at a potluck dinner. This vegetarian chop salad is one that includes garbanzo beans, a good protein source for vegetarians. You can adapt this salad easily to a variety of on hand ingredients when you need a last minute dish to prepare for a potluck dinner.

Put 1 can of garbanzo or chick peas in a large bowl. Chop 1 onion, 1 green or red pepper, 1 stalk of celery and 1 large tomato in 1/8 inch small dice pieces. Cook 2 c. of chopped spinach till tender in 1 t. of olive oil. Cool and chop into small pieces and add to the bean and vegetable bowl. Peel and chop 1 medium ripe avocado in small dice pieces and add to the vegetable salad mix.

Make a dressing of 2 T. honey mustard sauce, 1 T. olive oil and 1 tsp. Sugar. Toss salad ingredients with dressing and chill. It's a yummy vegetarian pot luck dinner dish that anyone an eat.

Calico Beans and Meatballs

Every potluck dinner usually has one crockpot or slower cooker of baked beans but when you add meatballs to it, it suddenly becomes a yummy main dish potluck special and it's easy to do with the following recipe.

In a skillet over medium heat, cook 6 strips of bacon. Don't brown it all the way, just till soft and cooked through. Drain on paper towel. Drain off all but about 2 T. of rendered grease from the bacon and saute 1 med onion chopped fine and 1 clove of garlic, minced.

Combine in a large oval slow cooker, one 27 oz can of pork and beans, one 15 oz can of red kidney beans, one 15 oz can of butter beans, one 10 oz pkg. Of frozen lima beans, one 15 oz can of chickpeas. Add ¾ c. of ketchup, ½ c. packed light brown sugar, 3 T. of cider vinegar and 2 t. mustard. Add the onion mixure and stir all to combine together.

Add 20 oz. Package of frozen precooked meatballs and stir into beans. Then lay the bacon strips on top of the beans and cook on low heat for 8 hours.

Slow Cooker Chicken and Stuffing

This slow cooker recipe brings the taste of old fashioned homemade stuffing and chicken to your next potluck dinner and it's so easy to make.

Saute 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts in 2 T. olive oil and 1 T. butter until brown and cooked.

While the chicken is cooking, Mix 1 can of cream of chicken soup, one 16 oz can of chicken broth, and 1 can of lowfat milk. Blend with whisk. Chop 1 med onion in small dice. Chop 2 stalks of celery in small dice and after chicken is cooked, remove the chicken and saute the celery and onion. After vegetables are soft and tender, stir in soup mixture and add 2 to 3 t. of poultry seasoning and 1 t. of rosemary.

After the mixture is warm, pour over large bowl of bread stuffing crumbs like Pepperidge Farms. Add chicken to stuffing mixture and pour entire contents into slow cooker. Let cook for 8 hours on low heat. Stuffing will slowly thicken and be ready to eat by the time the potluck dinner is open!

Of course, we have to hope that someone brought some killer desserts to the potluck. Don't wait for a church dinner to have a potluck dinner. Invite family and friends to gather for fun and have your own special potlatch or potluck dinner this fall.