It began with some mingling and appetizers consisting of vegetable crudites with artichoke hummus, Moroccan carrot dip, and roasted red pepper and walnut spread.
Then, Saurabh, the President of VSDC, gave a warm welcome while acknowledging the injustices that invariably come with Thanksgiving each year. He thanked everyone for spending their Thanksgiving at the event and then the soup course commenced.
For the buffet, there was quite a spread including my favorite wild mushroom ravioli with tomato and fennel broth. There was polenta, sausage, and mushroom stuffing; red quinoa pilaf with kale and corn; and seitan roast stuffed with shiitake mushrooms and leeks.
I really enjoyed the vegetable dishes the most including the spicy collard greens with sun-dried tomatoes and the green bean casserole.
Elizabeth Kucinich, the Policy Director for the Center for Food Safety and wife of Dennis Kucinich, was the speaker for the event. She was very professional and very well-composed throughout her speech as she talked about GMOs and why we should avoid them. She mentioned that there are two kinds of GMOs: pesticide producing and herbicide resistant. The plants that are pesticide producing are actually genetically engineered to produce pesticides to fight off pests and that is what you are eating when you consume those products. The herbicide resistant are engineered so that when herbicides are sprayed on the plants, they don't die and then you consume not only the GMO products, but also the pesticides. It was pretty interesting.
Finally, little pumpkin pies with whipped cream were served and they were scrumptious.
The event ended with raffle and door prizes along with an acoustic guitar performance by Stephen Svoboda.
I had a great time with my friends enjoying good food and wine. It made me thankful to be part of this incredible vegan community in DC. Thank you to all of the volunteers who worked tirelessly planning for this event. Your efforts are greatly appreciated!
Happy Thanksgiving!
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