Tuesday, May 08, 2007

Behind the Bash: SVS dinner #2


Monday was our second** Syracuse Vegan Society (SVS) dinner, this time held at Las Delicias restaurant. We had such a great time! But first, I take you behind the bash, to see some of the preparations that went into this event.




On Sunday, I met up with Bridget and Trac at Trac's house for some pre-dinner cupcake baking. Because Las Delicias is a Caribbean restaurant, we thought that the Dulce sin Leche cupcakes (from "Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World") would be a most appropriate choice. But first, we needed sustenance to get us through all that exhausting baking! Bridget made us this amazing feast that you can see above: bean salad, raw salad (carrots, yams, apples, walnuts and raisins), guacamole, salsa, tortilla chips, and avocado spread.



But wait, there was more! The pièce de resistance were these gorgeous sandwiches (a Sarah Kramer recipe). The slices of bread were covered by an Earth Balance/soy parmesan spread, then grilled. Into these babies went: avocado spread, tomato and red onion slices, and sprouts. So simple, yet so delicious.



After that energizing meal, the baking could commence. Here are the dulce sin leche cupcakes coming out of the oven, the caramel drizzle resembling a happy face.



And here they are cooled, covered in more caramel, and topped with coconut. We tasted these cupcakes the next day, and they were excellent: moist and rich.

Ok, on to the party. 25 or so people showed up to dinner last night- what a turn-out! Here are just some of the fabulous foods we ate:



Two different kinds of rice: one with mixed vegetables (above) and one with pigeon peas.



Two different kinds of plantains: maduros (sweet plantains, above, back) and tostones (savory plantains, above, front)



Steamed mixed vegetables and stewed vegetables in a tangy sauce (you can see those in the above photo)



Last but not least, some excellent spicy black beans. There was more, including salads, empanadas, and a fabulous garlic sauce that I didn't get photos of. You can see some more shots of food from Las Delicias (including the empanadas!) in this previous post.

Here are some shots of the people at the dinner:




I want to give a shout-out to Trac and Bridget for their time and energy organizing and running these dinners. They are so fun, such a great opportunity to meet new people, and oh yeah, deeeee-licious! Not to mention, this is a great way to raise money and awareness for animal rights, and to let local chefs know that there is a market for vegan foods.

P.S. I had a great time on Sunday meeting Trac's dogs--I'd never hung out with greyhounds before, and they were all such laid back sweethearts:



Mal, chilling.



T-Bo, staring curiously. He is a foster with a troubled past, but you wouldn't know it to play with this gentle boy. Read more about T-Bo on Trac's blog here.



Finally, Cosmo, the runner, seen here sniffing my head.

**Read about our first SVS dinner, held at Steve's Cantina y Grill in March, here.



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15 comments:

scottishvegan said...

That sounds like a great night out…all the food looks beautiful!! Your cakes look heavenly! I love the happy face cake…how cute! The doggies are adorable, and that photo of you and Cosmo is just amazingly cute! Love all your posts, but this has been one of my favourites! :)

Theresa said...

Gorgeous cupcakes, gorgeous dinner, gorgeous vegans, and gorgeous dogs!

Susan from Food Blogga said...

Oh my gosh, Bazu! This post makes me want to move to Syracuse so that I can partake in the next get-together. OK, maybe just visit. I love the sun too much. ;) I would love to meet you though!

urban vegan said...

what a wonderful celebration of vegan yumminess. i've been meaning to try the dulce sin leche cuppers. I can;t beleiv ehow much food you guys made!


Teac's doggies are sweet. They look like deer without antlers. My bro-in-law has a greyhound and yes, they are the sweetest dogs--hard to believe they can run as fast as they do.

Anonymous said...

love the food! is pretty familiar to the things we eat here !

aTxVegn said...

Hi, Bazu! The dinner sounds like so much fun and ALL the food looks so good. The sammies and salad before dinner look so good I'm getting hungry again! And the cupcakes - perfect.

The greyhounds are so beautiful and have such sweet faces! I love the picture of you and Cosmo.

aTxVegn said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Amey said...

Oh fun!
What a great post. Those sandwiches really look delicious.

I love the pictures of the doggies. Greyhounds are amazing and gentle creatures. We considered getting one, but their track records with cats can be a bit spotty evidently.

It seems so fun to meet some other vegans and eat together. I would LOVE that.

By the way, you can show up anytime and I"ll feed you! That would be super cool! And an offer to do the dishes on top of that! OH YEAH! :)

Neva said...

Looks like such a good time. Nothing like feasting while you get ready for the feast!

Greyhounds are such nice dogs!

I've never had savory plantains, just the sweet-ish kind. Interesting. I love black beans in almost anything though.

Yay cupcakes!

Unknown said...

Everything looks great. Plantains, pigeon peas, cupcakes, delicious!!

Kati said...

This looks like so much fun! All the food looks really excellent. You ladies did a great job with the cupcakes, too - I love the one that's smiling. I'd be smiling too with some of that caramel!

The greyhounds are beautiful dogs. I'm not sure if I've ever met one in person before, but they look very friendly and gentle. Their eyes always seem to be saying "come pet me, please!"

Vicki's Vegan Vice said...

hi bazu - i read all about this last night, but blogger wouldn't let me comment... so, i'm back to say, what an amazing vegan celebration! i love all your photos - esp. the peeps enjoying the meal and your smiling face w/the runner. the cupcakes look awesome - how fun to prepare with your new friends. :o)

JENNA said...

oh how fun and delicous this post sounds. I'm drooling over the avocado spread etc. sandwich and the cupcakes. as for plaintains..i'm obsessed..i'm making all my friends go to a cuban restaurant tomorrow just so i can eat em!

JENNA

runswithdog said...

It was a fun (but exhausting) night. What bazu isn't telling you all is that she invited us all over for wine and beer after the dinner. It was the perfect post mortem - a great way to unwind afterwards with great company. Thanks a lot for everything.

laura k said...

I love it! These dinners are really a wonderful way for like-minded people to come together and become friends... and enjoy DELICIOUS food! I love the pic of you and Cosmo. I love greyhounds, and I'd love to rescue one someday soon when I can!