Rotating Entrees

If you join us at The Wednesday Community Meal, you'll quickly learn that our entrees are always a changing.

We seat six to a table and it's common for guests to have a different entree than their tablemates. And, that's just the way it has to be because most of the food we serve is gleaned from our community partners — Good Samaritan Hospital, Phil's Uptown Meat Market, Pizza Schmizza, Ken's Artisan Bakery, Grand Central Bakery, New Seasons Market, Trader Joe's, Starbucks, SP Provisions and The Oregon Food Bank.  Utilizing gleaned food serves two purposes, it keeps our costs down and it prevents perfectly good food from going to waste.

Our regular guests are so understanding of the quirky rotating entree part of Trinity Episcopal Cathedral's free for everyone meal. I've even been told that it adds a little excitement to their dining experience. 

"What you serve is always a surprise." said one of today's guests. "I thought I was going to get the ribs but I got turkey and that was pretty good."

The one thing that is consistent is that we always do our best to serve a delicious and nutritious meal. And, we strive to accommodate dietary needs such as vegetarian, vegan and even gluten-free.

We served 279 meals today. Here are some of them:

The first guests in the door today got oven roasted chicken made by volunteer Terri. Oh my gosh it looked good, magazine cover good! The whole chicken was gleaned from Trader Joe's.

The barbecue ribs we served came from Good Samaritan Hospital.

The turkey also came from Good Samaritan Hospital. The potatoes came from The Oregon Food Bank and we made the kale and cabbage side dish from greens gleaned from New Seasons Market.

We made lamb meatballs from ground lamb from SP Provisions.

The chicken fried steak also came from SP Provisions.

Escaping The Rain

We tend to serve fewer guests at The Wednesday Community Meal when it's raining.

My theory is that those with housing or in a shelter opt to skip the wet trek to Trinity Episcopal Cathedral and stay inside and dry. It's primarily our homeless guests who join us rain or shine.


There's been record breaking rain in Portland this week and our lower 251 meal number reflected that.

One guest who takes the time to visit with me for a few minutes each Wednesday said, "This rain has been really hard on me." And then he politely asked, "Do you think I could have some extra food to go?" I was happy to oblige since we had plenty and we were also granting requests for seconds in the dining room.

Our aim at the meal is always, if we have the food, let's do our best to accommodate everyone.

Most of the guests who joined us today got an Italian sausage on a roll with sides of baked potatoes, coleslaw and roasted apples. Later guests were served entrees of steak and mushrooms, chili rellenos and orange chicken. Everyone was also offered soup, salad, dessert and drinks.

A lunch ready to be served.  Since the baked potatoes were small, guests got two.

The desserts we served were donated by Trader Joe's and New Seasons Market.

Thank You Trader Joe's!

Today's lunch of roast beef, rice and seasoned tomatoes and cucumber.

The majority of the food we served today at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral's Wednesday Community Meal was kindly donated by Trader Joe's on NW Glisan Street. The store gave us six small beef roasts and more than 40 packages of pastrami and thinly sliced roast beef, expensive proteins that helped us serve 314 meals for under 80-cents each.

We served the tender roast to the first group of guests who were seated, with sides of rice and sliced and seasoned tomatoes and cucumber. The very first guest in line had been waiting since 7 a.m. this morning so it felt great to treat him to a wonderful lunch.

Pastrami and roast beef sandwiches topped with sauerkraut and cheese came later during the two-hour lunch service and were also well-received in the dining room.  We served them alongside crispy oven-roasted potatoes that we seasoned with garlic, oregano, chili powder, salt and pepper.

The sandwiches we served today came with a side of crispy oven-roasted potatoes.

Also on the menu today were teriyaki chicken skewers, baked white fish, pork tenderloin, sliced beef over rice and salmon burgers that we topped with tartar sauce, capers and fresh dill. Utilizing primarily donated food to feed a crowd is always a challenge but it's a satisfying one. It means we have to be creative and change our menu frequently to use what we have but the extra work is worth it —  it saves money and stops perfectly good food from going to waste. And, the very best part is that we made a lot of hungry people happy today.


 

A Summer Reunion

I am so happy that Ian and Nicholas came in to help today. They are hard workers and lots of fun!

I love it when school is out and young volunteers come in to help at The Wednesday Community Meal.

My daughter Eleanor and I were the first volunteers to arrive at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral this morning and I had hopes that other young volunteers would also come in to help, but I didn't want to get my heart set on it with it being the first week of the summer break. School did just get out and lets face it, sleeping in does sound pretty appealing.

I shouldn't have for a second doubted the dedication of our fantastic young volunteers.

By 8 a.m., Sierra was in the kitchen ready to get to work washing and dicing three cases of squash from the Oregon Food Bank. Eleanor took on making croutons for the salads and then I peeked out into the dining room and saw Ian had come in and was already helping to set up tables in the dining room. Before I knew it, Nicholas, Ava, Zane and Olivia were also in the kitchen helping.

It really is a pleasure to see volunteers of all ages, working together to feed the hungry in our community. Ian, Zane and Nicholas just graduated from high school and will soon be heading off to college and I hate to think this might be their last summer volunteering at the community meal.  They've been coming in to help for years and they are an absolute joy to work alongside.

On the menu today was soup, salad, chicken enchiladas, pork tamales, rice, roasted summer squash, fresh salsa and watermelon.

A meal of chicken enchiladas, rice, roasted summer squash, fresh salsa and watermelon.

Zane made the salsa by combining diced fresh tomatoes, onion and cilantro with donated containers of salsa from Trader Joe's and a jug of La Victoria salsa purchased by Trinity from Cash 'n' Carry. He carefully seasoned it with extra chili powder, cumin, garlic powder and salt and made honestly one of the best and freshest tasting salsas I've ever tasted. It really is amazing what you can create with a little of this, a little of that, an open mind and a positive attitude. Negativity can really ruin a dish and there's no room or time for that in a busy and productive kitchen.

Zane's one of a kind super salsa!

By the time it was ready to serve, we had three more young helpers join our crew — Aidan, Scarlett and Isla Blue.

It was a fun and productive day and we made a lot of hungry people happy. We served 337 meals during our two hour service.

Olivia, Eleanor and Sierra getting the juice station ready. Eleanor burned her hand on the oven and as a remedy, has cold yellow mustard on it, held on with a plastic glove and painter's tape. I know this looks and sounds strange but for mild burns, cold yellow mustard works like a charm to cool and heal.

Aidan and Ave dishing up the chocolate pudding for dessert.

Isla Blue helped Cindy serve dessert in the dining room. They make the best team!

In addition to making the salsa, Zane cooked all of the pork tamales which were generously donated by Trader Joe's. He cooked every single one perfectly. Eleanor is alongside him, getting a plate of food for her lunch break.

First Wednesday Community Meal Of 2015

This is the very first meal of 2015 that we served today  — Glazed Chicken, Rice, Green Beans and Roasted Pears.

 The first Wednesday Community Meal of 2015 went off without a hitch and it was so nice to be back and reconnect with my fellow volunteers and the wonderful people who join us for lunch each week.

With it being the first of the month, we weren't too busy (we served 220 meals).  Those who did make the trek to Trinity Episcopal Cathedral for the free meal were treated to hearty, nutritious and delicious food — glazed chicken breasts (donated by Good Samaritan Hospital), Smithfield Smoked Ham (donated by a Trinity parishioner) and pork sausage (donated by a Trinity Parishioner).

The chicken we served came from Good Samaritan Hospital. The hospital donated the raw chicken breasts and then we season them with salt, pepper and herbs and baked them in a 350 degree oven. After baking, we tossed them in a light gravy to help keep them tender and moist.

Alongside the proteins, we served green beans, rice and roasted pears. The pears were donated by The Oregon Food Bank and they were flavorful but a little on the tough side so volunteers Andy and Nancy sliced them, tossed them with a bit of sugar, cinnamon, vanilla and butter and roasted them until they were soft and caramelized. They were soooo gooood and a hit with both the guests and the volunteers.

Smithfield Ham with Green Beans, Rice and Roasted Pears. The high end ham was donated by a Trinity parishioner and loved by our guests.

 Volunteers Leah and Andy assembled today's salads and they were full of crisp greens and colorful vegetables.

Alongside each salad was a piece of just-baked focaccia that we made using whole wheat pizza dough donated by Trader Joe's. We spread the dough out on a greased sheetpan and topped it with a drizzle of oil,  kosher salt, Italian herbs and mozzarella cheese and then baked it until it was golden brown and the cheese was bubbling. Seriously, who can resist warm bread?

Today's colorful salads with a side of warm focaccia.

It's fun getting creative with surprise ingredients and creating treats for our guests. It makes you feel good because you are making people happy and saving perfectly good food from going to waste.

Changing Weather And A Full Dining Room

After a long dry summer, the weather in Portland has suddenly changed to rain, marking the start of cooler temperatures and rough outdoor living conditions for our homeless Wednesday Community Meal guests.

When I entered Trinity Episcopal Cathedral this morning at 7:30 a.m, there already was a line for the meal which was still three and a half hours away. By opening time, the line went all the way through the church's large courtyard and out to the sidewalk.

Unpleasant weather always causes our guests linger longer in the dining room and who can blame them for that? — But this means that tables don't clear up as quickly, there's a constant line to be seated and a more hectic feel to the meal. All of our volunteers worked really hard today.

The first 75 guests inside got chili dogs as their main entree. After that there were tamales, enchiladas, chicken, beef stir fry, green curry, cod, halibut, gumbo and pizza. It was a challenge changing entrees so many times but we need to utilize the food we glean from our donors to help keep our costs down.

Seventy-five of our guests today got a chili dog, quinoa, collard greens and fruit.

We offered all of our guests green salads made by volunteer Linda. We were short kitchen volunteers today but that didn't faze Linda who on her own made all of the salads we served. The just-picked tomatoes in the salads are from Linda and her husband John's garden.

Thank you Good Samaritan Hospital, Phil's Uptown Meat Market, Trader Joes, Pizza Schmizza, Grand Central Bakery and Starbucks! Because of your generosity, we were able to feed everyone who came to our door today a well-rounded delicious and nutritious meal. We served 362.

Dessert today was an assortment of cakes and pastries courtesy of the Trader Joe's on NW Glisan Street.

Roasted Chicken And Greek Salad

Roasted Chicken

Greek Salad

We served nine different entrees today at the Wednesday Community Meal because as usual, we had to figure out the best way to utilize the food we had gleaned from Good Samaritan Hospital, Phil's Uptown Meat Market and Trader Joe's. The gleaning is so important because it helps keep our operating costs down and prevents perfectly good food from going to waste.

One of the most popular entrees today was roasted chicken. We had six whole chickens donated from Trader Joe's that we seasoned with garlic, chili powder, salt, pepper and herbs and roasted in a 350-degree oven until they were done and beautifully browned.

Volunteers Dave and Steve graciously pitched in to carve the chickens and did a great job. Meat carving is not my forte so I really appreciated their help.

Dave and Steve carving the chickens.

With the roasted chicken we fed the first 25 guests inside the door. After that we moved onto the next entree, chicken piccata from Good Samaritan Hospital, which fed eight guests. Then it was onto roast pork, roast turkey, fried chicken, beef fajita mix over rice, shepherd's pie, ribs and finally more turkey. In the end we served 261 meals.

One consistent highlight of today's meal were beautiful Greek salads made with crisp lettuce, feta, olives and garden-fresh tomatoes and cucumbers. We also offered everyone soup, dessert and drinks.

By creatively using a little of this and and a little of that we were able to serve a well-rounded and nutritious meal to everyone who joined us today at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral.

Good Food But Few Guests

One of today's 216 meals - A pork enchilada, ham, rice and veggies.

We had a large group of energetic volunteers eager to work at today's Wednesday Community Meal but a surprisingly small number of guests. At the end of the two hour service, we'd served only 216 meals. Last Wednesday, the first week of July,  we served 245 and our numbers typically go up each week until the end of the month.

The lulls in today's service actually made me more tired and my fellow kitchen volunteers said the same was true for them. When we're really busy it's easier to keep our energy levels up, especially in the summer heat. Continually stopping and starting is more tiring.

The meal was a success though, we served every person who came to our door a well-rounded and delicious meal. The first guests in the door got ribs from Phil's Uptown Meat Market, rice and vegetables. Then it was onto corned beef, chicken, hot roast beef sandwiches, ham sandwiches, sweet and sour chicken and pork enchiladas.

The corned beef, roast beef and ham were donated by the Oregon Food Bank. They came already cooked and just needed to be sliced and heated for serving. High school volunteers Micah and my nephew Sam took on the task of slicing all the meat and they did a great job. I told them I appreciated their hard  work and that they are now officially qualified to seek work in a deli.

Sam slicing the roast beef.

Olivia whisked up a combo of mayo and mustard to put on the sandwiches.

We also served soup, salad and dessert. The soup was donated from Good Samaritan Hospital, the salads were made from lettuce donated by Springhill Organic Farm and the dessert was delicious cake donated by Trader Joe's.

Linda and Leah plating salads.

Extra Special Salads

Today's salad.

The salads we served today at the Wednesday Community Meal were extra special thanks to some donated gourmet ingredients.

In the salads from Spring Hill Organic Farm we had garden fresh frisee, leaf lettuce and oak leaf lettuce. The Albany, Oregon based farm is so generous and donates weekly from June to September when they are at the Portland Farmer's Market. Spring Hill also gave us bunches of chard that we sauteed and added to rice for a colorful and healthy side dish.

Fresh greens from Spring Hill Organic Farm

To top the salads we had pomegranate seeds donated from Trader Joe's and slices of Trader Joe's Brie  that we picked up at The Oregon Food Bank. The salads were simply beautiful and it was a pleasure being able to serve them to our guests.

A case of Trader Joe's Brie that came from The Oregon Food Bank.

Pomegranate seeds donated from the neighborhood Trader Joe's on NW Glisan.

We served 261 meals today and had to change our entree menu multiple times to utilize the food we gleaned from Good Samaritan Hospital this week as well as the food we had on hand in our freezer.

One of the 261 meals we served today.

Every week we just try our hardest use what we have and serve the best meal possible. It's work, but joyful work, and especially so when we hear nice comments from the guests like this one that was told to one of our servers today:

"Thank you...The lunch was great, everything is great! The atmosphere is wonderful. I finally feel like a human being again."

Thirsty Guests

Super servers Mary and Carol in today's busy dining room. Both Mary and Carol are longtime and dedicated volunteers. Today they helped serve 360 meals during our two hour service from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

With the hot and sunny weather today in Portland, the guests at the Wednesday Community Meal were extra thirsty.

The high 80-degree weather came on rather suddenly after weeks of rain and caused us to go through double the usual amount of lemonade today — 20 gallons.

We of course were happy to oblige and just pour more since we wanted to satisfy our guests and help keep them cool and comfortable.

Besides a place to eat, the weekly meal in Kempton Hall at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral is a place for respite and we always aim to please if we can.

We served 360 meals today of mostly roasted chicken, rice and veggies. Once the chicken was gone we moved onto entrees gleaned from Good Samaritan Hospital — chicken skewers, meatloaf and fish.

As usual, there was also soup, salad and dessert. For dessert we served instant pudding whipped up by volunteer Cindy and slices of assorted cakes that were donated by Trader Joe's.

The cakes, with names like Rockin Chocolate Chip Fudge, Lemon Zinger and Chocolate Macaroon, were very popular. Thank you Trader Joe's for the generous donation!

Cindy slicing into the Rockin Chocolate Chip Fudge cake.

The cakes from Trader Joe's that we served today. What a wonderful selection and treat for our guests!

Microwave Meal Idea

My lunch today.

It's going on three weeks since I've been without a stove, kitchen sink and dishwasher because of my kitchen remodel and I can honestly say it hasn't been too bad.

With just a microwave and toaster at hand I've discovered that I can still make healthy meals for my family and avoid the top ramen and processed food route. Eating out is also not an option because I want to save money, not spend it - I'm building my kitchen on a tight budget.

Trader Joe's sells pre-cooked brown rice for 1.69 a package and that's been a very helpful ingredient. Microwavable brown rice can also be found at grocery stores.

So here's what I made today, a vegetarian rice bowl with lots of healthy additions like avocado, kale and walnuts. You could also add canned beans and/or precooked chicken sausage for even more protein and heartiness.

A vegetarian brown rice bowl is healthy, satisfying and colorful.

Microwave Vegetarian Brown Rice Bowl
(makes a hearty single serving)
2/3 cup brown rice (buy pre-cooked or microwavable rice)
2/3 cup kale, chopped
2/3 cup collard greens, chopped
1/2 small avacado, diced
4 mini sweet peppers, sliced
6 green olives, sliced
1/8 cup sheep's milk Feta cheese (I like the Valbreso brand)
1/8 cup walnuts
extra virgin olive oil
white wine vinegar
salt and pepper to taste

Heat the brown rice in a microwavable bowl in the microwave for 1 minute.  Add the kale and chard on top and microwave for another minute.

Top with the avacado, peppers, olives, feta and walnuts. Drizzle with a bit of olive oil and white wine vinegar and season with salt and pepper.

Gourmet Treats

At the Wednesday Community Meal today we enjoyed surprising our guests with some real gourmet treats - smoked salmon and smoked oyster chowder, just baked apple crisp, grass-fed Angus beef and a homemade lasagna inspired pasta dish. And, it was a busy day - we served 325 meals.

The smoked salmon and oyster chowder came courtesy of Fishpeople Seafood, a local company that has released a whole line of seafood entrees.

The company was so nice to donate to us and the chowder was a welcome change from our usual soup options.

The Fishpeople entrees which include Thai Coconut Lemongrass Tuna, Salmon in Chardonnay Dill Cream Sauce and Coconut Yellow Curry Tuna are available online and in local stores including New Seasons and Whole Foods.

A pouch of Smoked Salmon and Oyster Chowder.

The chowder in the warming pot.

A hearty serving topped with a few homemade croutons.

The apple crisp was made by our dessert expert Cheryl who amazingly assembled them and baked them in just over an hour. She is so well organized - she had the apples sliced and the topping mixed and ready to go when she entered the kitchen and voila, just out of the oven apple crisp which made the kitchen smell amazing.

Servings of just baked apple crisp.

The grass-fed Angus beef was donated to us by Trader Joe's. We sliced the thick steaks in half so more guests could have a taste. All the volunteers were excited about serving the steaks and were anxious to see the response.

Alongside the steak, we served a homemade pasta dish and garlic bread. Volunteer Steve who works the front table told me that he heard the guests raving about the food as they left. Yeah! Mission accomplished.

Our lasagna inspired pasta dish made with ground beef donated by Phil's Meat Market and whole milk cottage cheese from The Oregon Foodbank. And, a tender treat — a petite Angus steak.

Main Dish Mania

Whew! We served no less than 11 different main dishes today at the Wednesday Community Meal.

We used today's meal as an opportunity to clean our fridges and freezers of all our gleaned odds and ends. Changing the menu so often kept us on our toes but we were able to create and serve 268 full meals by using just some of this and some of that.

Thanks to the generosity of Good Samaritan Hospital, Phil's Meat Market (17 Northwest 23rd Place, Portland, OR)  and Trader Joe's (2122 Northwest Glisan Street, Portland, OR),  our guests left happy and satisfied.

Curious about how our menu evolved? Here's the list of our 11 main dishes.
 1. Sweet Chili Ribs
 2. Baked Chicken
 3. Enchiladas
 4. Baked Halibut
 5. Pasta with Marinara Sauce and Sausage
 6. Shepherd's Pie
 7. Sweet and Sour Chicken
 8. A Spicy Vegetarian Entree
 9. Baked Potatoes and Chili
10. Tri-Tip Steak Sandwiches
11. Turkey Sandwiches

It was a busy day!