I need a veggie dish

[wx4caster]

What about beets?

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Beet-Walnut-and-Gorgonzola-Salad-1030 (I skip the greens and double the beets)
http://mindfulcooking.org/recipes/odessa-beets (from The Moosewood Cookbook)
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Beet-Orange-and-Apple-Salad/

[blarg314]

One very easy Italian dish -

Cook whole green beans (trim off the end) until tender but still firm (microwave is great). Dress with fresh lemon juice, olive oil, sea salt and pepper, and serve at room temperature. We eat this a lot, and it's great with chicken.

For an easy raw one, I've recently fallen in love with grated carrot salad. Coarsely grate a carrot. Toss with olive oil, fresh lemon juice, a little bit of honey, salt and pepper, and toasted cumin seeds. [For a largish carrot I use the juice of half a lemon, a splash of olive oil, and a teaspoon of honey] It tastes better if you give it time to marinate. You can also make a mix of half carrot, half raw beet which is really good.

[jpcher]

A cold veggie salad seems to fit the bill here.

I have to give credit to Cicero, for her recipe on a green-bean salad. While it's not exact, it is awesome and I've served it many times. People rave about this dish.

*green bean - the easiest summer dish is to lightly steam/blanch them and then pour over a homemade herb vinaigrette and let it chill.

Do you have a recipe for vinaigrette that would go with the beans? (What herbs to add?) I'm really liking this idea . . . I can add slivered almonds and dried cranberries.

sorry, i'm not a 'follow-a-recipe' kind of cook. i just mix olive oil and lemon juice (or use vinegar or part vinegar part lemon, approx 2 parts oil to 1 part lemon/vinegar), pinch of sugar or honey and then get creative - add a little mustard and/or garlic, salt, pepper, and whatever herbs you like - i usually add thyme and /or oregano, but to keep with the thanksgiving theme, i'm wondering if sage might work also (just a bit ). taste it - dip a little piece of cucumber or celery and see if it's tasty/not too tart/just enough bite.

You can blanch the beans and make the dressing the day before (keep them in separate containers, so the beans don't get soggy.) I added slivered almonds and dried cranberries. Bring a serving bowl and toss everything together once you get to your destination.

For the dressing, I used Cicero's as a base, using olive oil, 1/2 vinegar (I like the "bite") 1/2 lemon juice, some brown mustard and sage . . . basically a honey-mustard vinaigrette.

[cicero]

I wish it were warm. It's cool and rainy today.

New question?  All of your suggestions got me thinking more about travel and preparation. I'm thinking about a pan of oven roasted vegetables.  I could roast them the morning before the party and they should  be okay to serve at room temperature.  Maybe some peppers, onions, mushrooms, cherry tomatoes drizzled with some olive oil and baked.  It seems like its needs something else. Would eggplant work? Zucchini?

Peppers , red onion wedges, mushroom, fennel ( trimmed and quartered) eggplant slices, cherry tomato. You can try squash or zucchini, they don't always taste right ( to me). Drizzle with olive oil, kosher salt and a pinch of dried herbs ( oregano etc).

For a variation on a theme, you can make roasted pepper salad/side dish. Roast different color peppers till the skin gets blackish ( lightly peirce with a pin a few times before you roast). Turn since or twice to make sure the roast evenly. Throw the lot into a paper bag or pot and cover till they cool enough to handle. Skin a seed ( skin should slip off easily). Now slice and toss with garlic slices/crushed garlic, cumin, salt a handful if slivered black olives, olive oil and lemon juice. If you like spicy foods then add a few hot peppers ( but careful when roasting cause they take less time).

[kaybee]

how about cherry tomato salad?cherry tomatoes cut in fourths,chopped fresh basil and toasted pine nuts.add the dressing when you get there--one part lemon juice,one part olive oil and 2 cloves crushed ,fresh garlic,salt and pepper.

[RubyCat]

I wanted to thank you all for your suggestions. They all sound delicious and I plan on trying every one of them some time soon. I wanted to let you know what I made.

I went to the market early this morning and bought ingredients to make the green beans and a veggie & dip platter and a roasted veggie medley. I started the dip and set it aside as a just in case dish but didn't need one.  It was so nice out, I decided to grill veggies on our gas grill. I sliced zucchini and summer squash lengthwise, slathered them in olive oil and put the on the grill. I also grilled red and green peppers, a sweet onion, a package of white mushrooms, and a container of grape tomatoes. After they were charred a bit, I cut them into pieces and put them in a large serving bowl. They looked pretty and Everybody liked them. There were no leftovers 

Later this week I'll have to try the green beans, and then the carrots. I've been trying to work more veggies into my diet anyway and this helps with that as well.

Thanks again for all of your help and suggestions.

[jpcher]

There were no leftovers 

This is a true sign of a very much appreciated dish!

You done did good.