Friday, June 08, 2007

Party!



Daiku and I threw an end-of-the-year party a couple of days before we left Syracuse. We weren't sure exactly how many people would end up coming, so we made enough food to feed an army! In addition, many of our guests brought food and drinks to share, making for an abundance of food. So sit back, relax, and enjoy photos of our delicious vegan spread. (I take full responsibility for some of the pictures being blurry, which might have been because of the lighting, or a hostess who combined an entire day of baking and cooking in a steamy hot kitchen with a little too much red wine...)



Veggies julienned, ready to be rolled into sushi. In the back, cucumbers. In the front, daikon, colored pink with the addition of a few drops of beet juice.



Various maki. Our friends, Heather and Eric, came by early to help. The four of us had a great time rolling sushi together. It is a great opportunity for talking smack- "oooh, you think you can stuff some more rice in there?" "Oh yeah, that's not gonna fall apart." "Um... do you need help?" We filled them with varying combinations of: rice, avocados, cucumbers, daikon, carrots, and chili sauce. We left the rice out for some of them, making just veggie maki.



Caribbean black bean and kale wraps, made by Heather. These were from a Moosewood Cookbook recipe, and she kicked them up several notches with the addition of orange liqueur. Spicy and delicious!



Fattoush salad, from a Nigella Lawson recipe: romaine lettuce, mint and cilantro, scallions and avocado, jalopeno and freshly toasted pita chips, topped with a lime/olive oil dressing. Green goodness.



Bruschetta made with market-fresh tomatoes, red onion, and basil topping freshly toasted baguette slices that had been rubbed with garlic.



Jambalaya made with smoked tofu and chick'n strips in front, a chickpea/spinach/tomato dish with cumin and other spices in the back.



Veggies with two kinds of bean dip, courtesy of Trac.



Fruit salad, courtesy of another guest.



Moroccan spiced meatballs with BBQ sauce. (These are the best vegan meatballs ever! I posted about them back in the fall)

AND DESSERT!



Coconut-lime cupcakes with lime buttercream frosting from "Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World." These were bursting with flavor- so good!



Mexican hot chocolate cupcakes, also from VCTOTW. These were a flavor revelation- now the top contender for my favorite cupcakes yet from this book.

I also baked green tea cupcakes, but instead of green tea glaze, I topped them with the same lime buttercream frosting as above. It actually worked perfectly for flavor, but I forgot to take photos!

The party was fun, and it was good to see so many friends before leaving Syracuse. We sent people home with leftovers and yet still had a packed fridge for the next couple of days. Oh well, that's not the worst thing in the world....
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14 comments:

Neva said...

Wow, it all looks so good. What could beat a sushi rolling party?

The cupcakes look wonderful too!

Vegan_Noodle said...

That's an awesome idea for the daikon, so colorful! All the food looked great, must have been a fun time....

Anonymous said...

Your sushi looks amazing!

Thanks for the cupcake reviews--I have VCTOTW too, but I have not made very many of them yet because I am nervous as to how they will turn out. It is good to know both the hot chocolate and coconut lime cupcakes are winners!

I hope you have a great trip!

Courtney

runswithdog said...

Man, oh man.....I feel sorry for anyone who didn't make the party. That was quite the spread you guys put on! Delish. My faves were the sushi (especially the ones with wasabi inside) and the chickpea dish. That was awesome - I had two servings :-) Any chance for the recipe? And your coconut cupcakes did come out so much better than mine, I think I will have to revisit that recipe.

aTxVegn said...

You really know how to throw a party! What an awesome food display, esp. the sushi! I've been craving fattoush. I'll have to make that my next salad meal.

Have a great vacation!

Anonymous said...

you are killing me over here! the pic that gets the award on this particular entry? the julienned veggies! so perfect!

Amey said...

those mexican hot chocolate cupcakes are currently 1st in line on my to-be-baked list. I am looking forward to tasting them next time I'm in a baking mood.

how do you julienne your veggies so nicely? do you actually have a gadget that does it?

bazu said...

Hi Amey,
Yes, I have a tool- I'd never be able to julienne things with such precision! I don't know what it's called, but it looks lika a veggie peeler with grooves at the end... I blogged about it in this post back in the Fall.

TB said...

holy cow, bazu! so much food!!! i am really intimidated by the idea of cooking for so many people, so this is really impressive to me... plus, it all looks delicious. you have some lucky friends.

anna/village vegan said...

I wish my friends knew how to throw a party the way you and daiku do...yummmmm.

Crystal said...

That food looks flippin awesome!! Especially the colorful sushi and the chickpea dish. Did you julienne the cucumber and daikon by yourself or did you use a mandolin?

-Crystal

Kati said...

Now THAT is what I call a party! There has been quite a buzz around the Mexican hot chocolate cupcakes lately - I will have to try them out.

laura k said...

Wow, what an awesome spread! I would love to gather a bunch of vegan cooks together for a party and see what ensues!

Emilie said...

Damn! What a completely awesome looking spread! Sounds and looks like you had a delicious party.