The Office Potluck

It's that time of year again, when everyone has to bring something to work for the holiday party.  An office potluck inevitably turns into 3/4 desserts and 1/4 veggie and fruit trays from the people who forgot until that morning.

I signed up to bring a brisket and didn't find out until after it was bought that one person didn't eat red meat, another was vegetarian, and a third is trying to be vegan.  Feeling guilty, I also signed up for a vegan main dish.  I'm turning the polenta with broiled vegetables vegan, with soy milk and nutritional yeast taking the place of the goat cheese.  I've never used nutritional yeast before, so I'm glad they carry it in the bins at Sprouts.  I don't want to be stuck with a full package of something I might never use again.  The rest of the soy milk I can use in coffee or tea.  Not my first choice, but I don't dislike the taste.  Mostly, I still have dairy at least once a day because you lose the enzymes to digest it if you go off dairy completely.  I haven't been able to drink a cold glass of milk in over a decade, but I can have some in coffee or any heat-treated dairy product.

I also dug out the hot plate I never use.  It's probably from the '70s, but hasn't started a fire yet.  The oven at work is the size of a closet, so reheating wasn't an issue.  This was just for anyone who wanted to keep things warm afterwards.

What I've learned from this year's endeavor is that there are too many specialized diets out there and you can't please everyone.  I only did the broiled veggies because I seriously doubted anyone else would bring something with nutritional value.  And because it goes with the brisket.  My advice is to bring something you like and don't mind bringing home the leftovers.  If everyone does that, they'll at least be able to eat their own dish.