Summer Pot Luck

The selection of the proper item to bring to a pot luck is a tricky thing. The most common mistake is to make something that is best eaten warm which, if not cold when the eating starts, will be by the time the party has entered the snacking phase. This may work out if the dish can be kept warm in a crock pot and does not get mushy or crusty when sitting but that is frequently not the case. Another mistake is selection of a food that is inappropriate to the season. Unlike clothing, certain foods are seasonal for pragmatic reasons such as ingredient freshness, digestion and safety. Bringing a heavy, mayonnaise-based dish to an outdoor summer picnic is not only hard on the digestive tract of the poor souls who give it a whirl, it is unsafe.

Personally, I find a pot luck one of the best times to experiment. Rather than haul out an oldie that has been had a million times, why not take the opportunity to offer something that no-one is likely to have tried before? No matter what you bring, not everyone will like it anyway and you are likely to please at least someone with anything.

Keeping all of this in mind when I was recently invited to a summer pot luck, I decided to take the following dish from ``The Nero Wolfe Cook Book'' by Rex Stout. The copy of this out of print book that I acquired through Amazon was the second printing published in 1973 by The Viking Press (SBN 670-50599-4). I realize that I have used this reference in two of my previous three postings, but this dish really did stand out as something proper for the occasion, which is more than half the battle in food preparation.

(Yes, picture forgotten again)

The menu

• cantaloupe and celery salad

Basic Preparation

Never put celery down the garbage disposal. It will become a horrific mass which will take days to break down during which you will be without a kitchen sink. If you do make this mistake, do not rush to buy a new disposal unless you are simply unwilling to wait for the cellulose to break down on its own. The same can occur with any pulpy fruits or veggies such as potato peels. When in doubt, put excess vegetable matter in the garbage.

Cantaloupe and Celery Salad

Although I was unsure about this mixture, I thought it was very tasty and it went over well at the pot luck. The dressing was an interesting combination of tarragon wine vinegar, olive oil, currant jelly, and poppy and coriander seeds. It was fairly easy to prepare and kept well in the heat. The flavor was light and cool which was perfect for a summer party.