Work Potluck Week Eleven: Seven Wonders of the Ancient World and Taking Symbolism Too Far

Last week's theme was Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It was also the first week Anna actively participated in the potluck. The theme was a lot more abstract than that of the previous potluck, but we are super smart people. Once again, we drew the Seven Wonders at random and then chose which course to make.

Anna: Lighthouse of Alexandria

Stuffed bell peppers with feta, (sausage), corn, onion, and cornbread stuffing. Anna didn't have a great explanation for the dish except that stuffed peppers are part of traditional Egyptian cuisine. I remarked that the peppers resembled stoplights, which is (tenuously) connected to the lighthouse.

Amanda: Great Pyramid of Giza

Egyptian style pitas, feta, and baba ghanoush
Amanda also opted for traditional Egyptian dishes. The Egyptian style pitas she made were denser than the typical pita encountered stateside, and their color was reminiscent of sand.

Duo: Statue of Zeus at Olympia

Watermelon limeade with pineapple and cherry garnish

Zeus, being the head honcho of the Greek pantheon, invented many things, including infidelity. While Hera was technically Zeus' wife, Zeus loved some of dat mortal ass. My original idea was a limeade because sour flavor had a shocking quality to it, which I made more obvious by adding lightning-shaped pineapple garnish and citric acid and sodium bicarbonate. The limeade turned into watermelon limeade (to emulate the all powerful presence of Zeus, I squeezed the juice out a watermelon with my bare hands), and a cherry garnish was added, because... well, remember what I said about Zeus, infidelity, and dat mortal ass?

Greg: Hanging Gardens of Babylon

Garden salad with mixed greens, peppers, tomatoes, and feta
Originally, Greg was going to bring an empty salad bowl because the hanging gardens' location has not been verified. Knowing that we would spite him for that, however, he opted to bring a huge mix of vegetables, some of which looked very much like each other. Tomatoes resembled peppers and vice versa, and who could keep all of the salad green varieties straight?

Jaycie: Temple of Artemis at Ephesus

Vegetable kebabs with zucchini, yellow squash, bell peppers, onion, and baked cheese
The temple of Artemis would have been a lot easier to execute if the potluck weren't vegetarian. So, instead of serving venison to represent the bounty of the huntress, Jaycie modeled her dish after the columns supporting the temple. The ingredients are also skewered because one of Artemis' signature weapons is bow and arrows, the latter represented by toothpicks to signify the act of hunting.

Sam: Colossus of Rhodes
Stuffed mushrooms with spinach, cream cheese, feta, parmesan, and garlic
The Colossus of Rhodes is a statue of the Titan Helios, the personification of the Sun. Do you know what comes from exposure to the Sun? Vitamin D. Do you know what else contains a lot of Vitamin D? MUSHROOMS. The connection is so clear I'm surprised you didn't arrive at it earlier.

Sarah: Mausoleum at Halicarnassus

S'mores of the Dead

Why s'mores? Because graham crackers are like the earth, chocolate is like the physical remnants of the deceased, and marshmallows are like ghosts. Plus, are you seriously going to turn down s'mores? I don't think so.