Hi everyone. I was part of a huge community fundraising effort last night with my Organization, Parents Who Rock (www.parentswhorock.com) and raised over $28,000 to help build a Universal Access Playground in our town. The event was fantastic and went off nearly without a glitch because of the dozens of people who volunteered their time and talents to promote and execute a town-wide event that will benefit kids with special needs and ones without.
As every good fundraiser knows, food is important. What is also important is a plan to deal with the copious amounts of leftovers that a large event usually has. We made a point of finding some soup kitchens in the area that would take the leftovers BEFORE the event so we did not have to worry about throwing it out at the end. Not only did we feed a ton of people, but NOTHING went to waste . By now, you probably know how I feel about waste!
Because the bar volunteers had taken the time to cut up loads of lemons and limes that , in the end, were not all used, I took them home to morph into some other entity. I will freeze most of them for now, but I will take a bunch of the lemons and make my awesome roasted lemon artichoke dip tomorrow which is really lemony. I hope you like it.
Anyhoo, thank you to all you fundraisers out there and please think globally, act locally and find a place for those leftovers before your events.
Roasted lemon Artichoke Dip:
1 14 oz. can artichoke hearts in water, drained (can also use in oil but wash them with water ,drain them, and dry them).
1-2 lemons cut up into 1/2 inch pieces with the rind (the more lemon, the more lemony it is-I use 2 lemons b/c I like it really tart)
1/3 cup plus 2 TBS mayo
2 oz. Philadelphia Cream Cheese or other block kind
About 1/2 cup or so of bread crumbs mixed with a little butter or olive oil
salt and pepper
Roast lemons and artichoke hearts on a parchment paper lined baking sheet
until they turn fragrant and brown, maybe 20 minutes but only you know the power of your oven so watch them! Let cool.
Put lemons, artichokes, mayo and cream cheese in a food processor and pulse until it all combined. Bake in a small baking dish at 350 degrees with the breadcrumbs until bubbling, about 20 minutes or so. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve with pita chips, bread, crackers, etc. Enjoy!
One Response
$28,000!! That is fantastic! Congrats on a job well-done!