Help me feed the band

November 28, 2023 7:35 AM

Help me feed my band after a show on Friday

We're playing in a neighboring town on Friday night and staying over because of how late we'll be getting out. Most of the restaurants and even convenience stores in the area will be closed by the time we make it back to the house we rented; last year when we played under similar circumstances we ended up eating a shitty mishmash of stuff we were able to scrounge together, to nobody's delight or satisfaction.

This year I wanna bring some prepared food (along with a bunch of snacks) that we can feast on when we get done. I'd like it to be:

- vegan
- easy to transport
- easy to make ahead of time
- preferrably light on utensil-use (I have no idea if this house even has spoons, etc., but we can always bring some if you've got a suggestion that we've just GOTTA go with)
- feeds 10 (all of our wives will be joining us)

Thanksgiving + Christmas Party Planning has me pretty burned out on food ideas, so I'm coming to you folks for inspiration. What delicious thing(s) should I make???

posted by saladin to Food & Drink (15 answers total)

Will you have access to the home before the show? Can you get something going in a crock pot, so it’s ready when you are?
posted by sacrifix at 7:48 AM on November 28, 2023

Possibly but I don't think we can count on it.
posted by saladin at 7:49 AM on November 28, 2023

Black bean and sweet potato burritos (with vegan wraps)?
posted by dreamphone at 8:24 AM on November 28, 2023

Frozen waffles with bananas, berries, granola, peanut butter, and/or maple syrup on top. The waffles can either thaw during the show and you can put them in a toaster when you get to the house, or you can go straight to cooking them in the oven for a short time. Everything else will keep un-refrigerated. You can make the waffles yourself and freeze, or Van's and Nature's Path both make a vegan waffle.
posted by cocoagirl at 8:31 AM on November 28, 2023

What about a variety of empanadas? You can made them ahead, then freeze them, then transport them without worrying too much about them as they should stay cool, then cook them on a baking sheet for a while once you get there. You can make them all vegan or if only some people are vegan, you can also make non-vegan ones if that makes sense. They can usually be eaten more or less out of hand, aren't very messy, and you can provide some dipping sauces or sides. If you don't have the energy to make them yourself, you can buy some if you can find a place. Any leftovers will be great for breakfast.
posted by vunder at 8:31 AM on November 28, 2023

Chickpea salad sandwiches, frozen vegan pizza that you make when you get back to the house, veggies and hummus, chips and guac, fresh fruit, brownies. You’ll probably be tired and starving when you get back to the house so I would not try to go too ambitious with post-show prep. I like the empanadas idea or something like spanakopita or samosas—something you can easily heat in bulk and eat with your hands!
posted by music for skeletons at 11:26 AM on November 28, 2023

Another thought is Veggie Dogs (*) with buns and fixings and a hearty lentil or chickpea or kale salad - some salads will get better as they sit so that could be a good option. (You'd have to bring something to serve the salad in, but it might not be hard to bring a stack of cups or bowls or plates and some forks.)

Eater says that Morningstar dogs are the best vegan hot dogs.

This lentil salad is good and gets better as it sits. This broccoli salad gets better as it sits.
posted by vunder at 12:19 PM on November 28, 2023

A big batch of vegan kimbap?
posted by Adifferentbear at 1:11 PM on November 28, 2023

I think chili hits all your criteria
posted by grateful at 3:44 PM on November 28, 2023

A bunch of hummus wraps (spinach tortilla, bell pepper, cucumber, carrot, etc.) works well for hikes and road trips with no utensils or heat. Maybe could try filling with tabbouleh.
posted by eyeball at 4:15 PM on November 28, 2023

Make a tray of vegan spanikopita, which is not only delicious and full of veggies, but is even better the next day and can be eaten without utensils.
posted by mezzanayne at 10:18 PM on November 28, 2023

Presumably there's an oven, but not sure on the utensils?

Take oven trays and do a bunch of whatever frozen vegan oven-bake goods you can take with.

Samosas, empanadas, hot potato chips, vegan sausage, some dessert options, put them in the oven as soon as you get there. If they're frozen before you leave they'll defrost which is OK.
All finger food.

But honestly might just be easier to take enough utensils for everyone and do one of the above options?
posted by Elysum at 10:26 PM on November 28, 2023

I came in to suggest chili, because I feel that late at night, after work, you need something that is easy to reheat and also easy to eat. Bring the spoons.

A similar idea could be a couscous with a vegan stew, like this. Make the stew ahead and reheat it. Use instant couscous and follow the instructions on the package for cooking.
posted by mumimor at 7:02 AM on November 29, 2023

Make chili and cornbread. It needs spoons and a serving spoon/ ladle, bowls. Reheat the chili on the stovetop and the cornbread in the oven. Vegetarian chili usually needs extra fat because of not having ground beef. Bonus points if you bring sour cream and shredded cheese to top the chili.
posted by theora55 at 10:14 AM on November 29, 2023

All great answers, thanks y'all. I ended up pre rolling a bunch of burritos and popping them in the oven the second we got done with the show. Thirty minutes later we were eating piping hot burritos and everybody was so pleased!
posted by saladin at 6:34 PM on December 16, 2023