For the past four summers, my professional women’s group, The Proof Collective, has hosted a Tomato Girl dinner. We were seeing the aspirational, Italian-coastal Aperol spritz propaganda on social media and decided to make it happen in the Bay. It started in my backyard here in Oakland, on a long table with mismatched tablecloths borrowed from my boyfriend’s family’s catering company. The premise: everyone brings a dish with tomatoes. We create a Google sheet so gals can sign up for appetizers, salads and mains. Drinks and desserts don’t need to have tomatoes, but we’ve tried some interesting takes, like Depression-era tomato soup cupcakes. I think we were ahead of the trend on savory/sweet tomato cocktails. Since our inaugural gathering, I’ve passed the baton to my friend Emily, a fabulous host with an equally fabulously back patio.
You’d think that a meal centered around a specific ingredient would be redundant. Luckily, the spreadsheet helps from duplicate tomato-mozzarella salads. But it always surprises me how members interpret the assignment. Maddie, who works in food tech, made Hetty Lui McKinnon’s tomato-dumpling salad when it was still hot off the presses. It’s become a year-round riff for many of our members. Suzanne, who makes award-winning candy, always makes the most incredible whipped cheese and tomato-stuffed gougeres. Meleyna kind of blew my mind this year with her silken tofu caprese. This year, I made my tomato-baked beans inspired by Greek gigantes plaki. Sorry, but you’ll have to wait for the recipe in my cookbook in September 2027!
What I love about a themed potluck dinner is the flexibility. I LOVE a cookbook club (we host them…a lot!) But going with a single theme gives you the ultimate freedom. You can make a beloved recipe, try something new you’ve bookmarked or completely out-of-the-box. If you need to dial it in and bring a bottle of wine or loaf of bread, we always welcome that, too. If you want to make your own buns and condiments for Chicago dogs, it will not go unnoticed. It’s also, historically, one of most popular events of the year. It’s become like our Thanksgiving, a Super Bowl-like tradition (but not to be confused with our annual “Souper Bowl” soup potluck that happens around the Big Game in February).
If you’re looking to host a themed dinner, consider what’s happening where you live at the markets. We’ve also hosted citrus dinners and have toyed around with the idea of spring greens, beans and corn-themed nights. What about an apple theme this fall? Or cooking with wine? Or olive oil? (*swoon*) You could also focus on a specific color, cuisine, region, piece of cookware (like a Dutch oven), a cookbook author or recipe developer you love…the list goes on. It doesn’t need to look like Instagram or Pinterest with perfectly set tablescapes and over-the-top plating. It’s a fun, low-stakes and relatively low-cost way to get together with other food people.
I should also mention it’s the PERFECT occasion to show off your tomato-themed clothing and accessories. I’ve been rocking these pants for years and they’re always a conversation starter.
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