I have a secret to revel. I have aversion to office potlucks. I loathe them.
Usually, your co-workers will propose one for a holiday or someone's birthday. If your lucky, a few people in your office will actually know how to cook and own a pan. If you are unlucky, well, don't be surprised when the entire potluck table contains bags of chips and boxed cookies.
Sometimes, a theme will be proposed. It will usually be Mexican food, because it's easy and cheap to make. If you are lucky, you will have someone of Hispanic origin who might bring in something delicious like tamales or home made empanada's . If you are unlucky, you will have 4 bags of stale tortilla chips, guacamole, and three tubs of salsa.
If you are lucky, a fabulous and generous co-worker will bring something simple yet delicious in a crock pot. If you are unlucky, the cat lady brings in a casserole of Kraft Mac and Cheese with 10 different shades of cat hair added to the mix.
Which brings me to the hygiene point. Look around your office. The person next to you with the dirt under their nails, messy desk, and bad personal hygiene is going to cook something they might actually want you to at least try. Try not to think about what their kitchen looks like while you are choking down that mayo based dip that has been sitting out for several hours unrefrigerated.
Another secret to share. Since I don't work in an office anymore I think I'm safe to share this. I have been known to take a plate of food from the potluck, eat a couple of items that look delicious and are from people I trust at work, and then throw the rest in my garbage bin discretely. It's important that you put a few crumbled up pieces of paper over said plate so you are not caught throwing out prized goulash or rock hard brownies. Basically, work potlucks are a pot shot at best.
I chalk up most of this to my germ aversion. I have an over active imagination, so I just have visions of the people I work with actually cooking and it puts me off my feed.
Another thing, never drink the coffee at work if you have not sat there and watched it brew. Especially if it has an open top . You never know what sick twisted jerk you work with might add something a little extra to the brew. I see news stories everyday about someone peeing in the coffee or, god forbid, adding poison. You don't want to become collateral damage.
This is a favorite culled from the web:
"On April 27, 2003, sixteen members of the Gustaf Adolph Lutheran Church in New Sweden, Maine, became ill following the church coffee hour; one man, died a short time later. It was found that the coffee had been heavily laced with arsenic, setting off a flurry of local gossip and hysteria and worldwide media coverage. As of the 2005 publication of journalist Christine Ellen Young's book, A Bitter Brew: Faith, Power and Poison in a Small New England Town, no one had been charged with the crime, but Young's book revealed that lifelong church member Daniel Bondeson, who shot himself at his family farm five days after the poisoning, left a note confessing sole responsibility for the crime. Bondeson died while undergoing surgery, leaving Maine State Police and many church members convinced someone had helped Bondeson. Young's book rejected the conspiracy theory, citing evidence that the well-liked Bondeson had a dark side, harboring bitter grudges and battling emotional problems. In 2006, the Maine Attorney General agreed that Bondeson had acted alone and closed the case."
I personally had a coworker who bragged to me that many years ago, they had peed in the coffee. I guess if you trust your coworkers, by all means drink the coffee and eat ALL the potluck food.
Years ago, a coworker who was an excellent cook and had good personal hygiene habits (who wasn't crazy in the least) gave me this recipe for a delicious breakfast sausage and hash brown casserole. We jokingly call it "Heart Attack Casserole" because the ingredients are a little on the fatty side. If you eat this every day, you really would pack on the pounds and maybe drop dead of a heart attack, so don't eat this every day. I actually used to make this at least once a month, but then I decided that we should reserve this for special occasions. You can actually swap out the ingredients for low fat versions, but then it's not quite the same.
I make this a lot for potlucks. It always is a big hit. I promise I wash my hands and never add any "special" ingredients!
Hash brown Heart Attack Casserole
1 roll Jimmy Dean Sausage Hot
1 white onion
1 carton sour cream
2 cups (1 bag) shredded sharp cheese
1 bag frozen hash browns shredded style
1 can cream of mushroom soup
4 cups crushed corn flakes
4 TBL butter
Brown sausage and onions in pan, then drain off extra oil. Get out your biggest mixing bowl, and then mix sausage, onion, sour cream, hash browns, cheese and mushroom soup until thoroughly combined. Spread in a large Pyrex baking dish. Then melt butter and mix with crushed cornflakes. Spread corn flake mixture over the top of casserole and bake in preheated over at 350 for 1 hour. This can be made up the day before, kept in the fridge, and then baked the next day.
No comments:
Post a Comment