It’s no surprise that potlucking is at its prime during summertime. While sharing food in a communal setting transcends seasons, potlucks especially thrive during the warmer months, when there’s a greater desire for community and outdoor gatherings.
The biggest question that seems to plague most people’s minds when prepping for a potluck is, “What should I bring?” It’s best to stick to simple dishes that are portable, like a baked spaghetti casserole, an artichoke potato salad, or a batch of sweet and salty deviled eggs. You can even skip the cooking part entirely and simply put together a medley of frozen appetizers or an array of ready-to-eat snacks and dips. Thankfully, Trader Joe’s has plenty of options to choose from.
Last week, I put together a TJ’s grocery guide focused on upgrading your picnic. This week, I’m shifting my attention to potlucks. From Spanakopita to a Roasted Hatch Chile & Jalapeño Cheese Dip, here are eight items that are guaranteed to make you a stellar guest at your next potluck.
Pastry Bites Feta Cheese & Caramelized Onions
You can never go wrong with bringing an appetizer — or appetizers — to a potluck. TJ’s Pastry Bites with feta cheese and caramelized onions are easy on the eyes, easy to serve and easy to enjoy. Each pack includes twelve pieces of buttery puff pastry filled with creamy feta and cream cheese that’s topped with caramelized onions. The finished pastry is “the ultimate melt-in-your-mouth worthy, sweet n’ salty concoction,” as described by TJ’s.
The Pastry Bites can be enjoyed as a standalone hors d’oeuvres or alongside other bite-sized appetizers. They also go great with a boozy beverage (whether that’s a fun, summer wine or a homemade cocktail) or a leafy green salad.
Jalapeño & Cream Cheese Crispy Wontons
Continuing on the appetizers train, TJ’s Jalapeño & Cream Cheese Crispy Wontons are described as “a mix between a rangoon and jalapeño popper.” The wontons are filled with a delicious blend of cream cheese, parmesan and diced jalapeño peppers, which is then encased in a wonton skin and fried “until bubbly and golden brown.” Each bite is creamy, tangy, cheesy, spicy and irresistible. Truly, everyone at the function won’t be able to get enough of these wontons.
Simply pop the wontons into a conventional oven for 10 minutes. Once cooked, they’re ready to be served. According to TJ’s, the wontons pair well with the brand’s Sweet Chili Sauce, but you can also serve them with hot sauce, soy sauce, or fruit jam for a hint of sweetness.
Chao Tôm
TJ’s take on a classic Vietnamese dish includes minced and fried shrimp and veggies that are generously seasoned with a blend of ginger, garlic, sesame oil and lemongrass. The shrimp-veggie mixture is then gently wrapped around a sugarcane stick, which can be chewed on once the savory part of the appetizer is eaten!
Preparing the Chao Tôm requires very little time and effort. Warm them up in an air fryer or conventional oven until they’re crispy and golden brown. Serve them with a sweet chili dipping sauce or fresh lettuce leaves and rice vermicelli noodles.
Roasted Hatch Chile & Jalapeño Cheese Dip
Little explanation is required to prove why TJ’s Roasted Hatch Chile & Jalapeño Cheese Dip deserves a spot on the potluck table. The dip’s name alone is enough to make anyone’s mouth water. Made with sour cream, cream cheese and cheddar that’s flavored with roasted Hatch chiles and jalapeños, the dip doesn’t skimp on dairy or heat. It’s best enjoyed warm and served alongside tortilla chips, toasted baguette slices, crackers, or cut-up vegetables.
TJ’s said it best: “Where does one even begin to recommend occasions for Trader Joe’s Roasted Hatch Chile & Jalapeño Cheese Dip? Perhaps one starts from the premise that any occasion can be vastly improved by the addition of a superlatively creamy, remarkably cheesy, and sensationally spicy appetizer Dip, and goes from there.”
Bring this dip to your next potluck and you’re guaranteed to be a VIP — “Very Important Potlucker,” a term coined by Delish’s Mackenzie Filson.
Greek Spanakopita
Crafted by Athenian bakers themselves, TJ’s Greek Spanakopita is as authentic as it gets. Each individual “pie” consists of a filo dough base that’s filled with three cheeses (feta, mizithra and a grating cheese), spinach, onion, leek, olive oil, dill, parsley, salt and pepper. The stuffed dough is then pre-cut into wedges that puff up and become flaky, buttery pastries once they’re finished baking in the over.
TJ’s Greek Spanakopita doubles as a potluck appetizer or main entrée (just be sure to purchase several of them). The spanakopita can be served with “a fresh salad of tomatoes, olives, and greens, and lightly dressed with a bit of olive oil and lemon juice,” TJ’s recommended.
Sweet Chili Mango Complete Salad Kit
Salad makes for a great potluck dish, but it can be both tedious and time-consuming to cut and slice each ingredient and whip up a homemade dressing. Luckily, TJ’s has an array of packaged salad kits to choose from, like its Sweet Chili Mango Complete Salad Kit. The complete kit includes cabbage, kale, Brussels sprouts, and radicchio, roasted sunflower seeds, toasted quinoa, dried bits of mango and a Thai-style sweet and spicy vinaigrette. “With just a quick toss of these ingredients, you’ll instantly have a Salad with tangy, tropical flavors and layers of complementary textures in every bite,” according to TJ’s.
Of course, this salad can be served on its own. But if you’re looking to really amp up your potluck game, pair the tossed salad with spring rolls (like TJ’s Vegetable Spring Rolls) or TJ’s Chicken Shu Mai.
Ricotta & Lemon Zest Ravioli
TJ’s Ricotta & Lemon Zest Ravioli embodies summer to its fullest. Each pasta — which is made from wheat flour, durum wheat semolina and egg — is rolled thin and shaped like a sunflower. It’s then individually stuffed with fresh ricotta infused with fresh lemon zest and mixed with butter, bread crumbs and salt. Indeed, the star of this ravioli is Sicilian lemon, which are “grown in the volcanic soil around Mount Etna,” according to TJ’s, and have a “bright acidity and distinct sweetness.” Enjoy this pasta coated in a buttery herb sauce or topped with fresh arugula, sunflower seeds, shaved parmesan cheese and a drizzle of olive oil.
New York Deli Style Cheesecake
Rich, creamy and devilishly good, TJ’s New York Deli Style Cheesecake is the best dessert to celebrate the end of a potluck. “With its sweet, ever-so-slightly tart, sour cream and cream cheese base, as well as its crumbly graham cracker crust, Trader Joe’s New York Deli Style Baked Cheesecake is the very definition of luxurious,” according to the product’s description.
All you have to do is let the cheesecake thaw for an hour or two at room temp before serving. Serve it with fresh berries, a drizzle of chocolate sauce or whipped cream. You can also enjoy it as is alongside a cup of freshly brewed espresso.
Strawberries & Cream Cloud Cake
Nothing screams summer like a strawberry shortcake! TJ’s Strawberries & Cream Cloud Cake, made in Sweden, is described as “somewhere between a nostalgic strawberry shortcake and an elegant treat from a European pâtisserie.” It consists of two layers of moist sponge cake smothered in custard filling and whipped cream that’s then topped with a glorious spread of saucy strawberries and dollops of extra whipped cream.
Each cake serves six people, so if you’re planning on feeding more guests, be sure to stock up on an extra box or two. The cake is sold frozen and needs to be defrosted in the fridge overnight before it’s ready to eat. It’s available for a limited time only this summer, so be sure to get the cake as soon as possible.
