The Vegetarian Supper Club

Sharing supper with friends, fellow parishioners and often strangers is an enduring New England church tradition. Lori Case and her team at the Seventh Day Adventist church in Osterville have been serving Sunday suppers—the Vegetarian Supper Club of Cape Cod—for over four years. The church’s newly-built Refresh Center welcomes all to these increasingly popular organic, communal meals. Case is a registered nurse with a BS in Holistic Nutrition and a certificate in plant-based cooking from the online Rouxbe Cooking School. She plans clean, fresh vegetarian fare, while “trying to remove the stigma of vegetarian food. Smell, looks and taste are so important. It is a labor of love.” All the menus are meat and dairy free—thus, vegan—and delicious.

Every meal has four courses (appetizer, salad, two entrées and dessert) and is served with beverages of lemon water, hot organic tea and a coffee alternative. Mexican Night featured homemade chips and salsa, Southwestern tortilla soup, taco salad, tofu enchiladas, “cheez” quesadilla with grilled vegetables and artichoke rice, fresh fruit salad and Mexican wedding cookies. The following month attendees enjoyed butternut squash bisque, cornbread in the shape of a heart, “heart beet” salad, “chickun” a la king and a chocolate cupcake with cream “cheez” swirl frosting, decorated with a chocolate heart and tiny candies. The attention to detail is meticulous and delightful.

The suppers were started in the church basement, but the team soon realized they needed a compliant professional kitchen, and raised money to build the Refresh Center, a name chosen by the congregation. The vision for the center is a place of hope and healing shared by all. Healthy, vegetarian meals are one part of that. While Case does the menu planning and shopping—as organically as possible—she has a kitchen team, a serving team and a clean-up team. Their Sabbath is Saturday, thus the Seventh Day name, so all work is done on Sunday. Menus are printed up, and themed decorations and even costumes for the servers add to the festive atmosphere.

Past suppers have included Italian night, Thanksgiving “turkee” dinner, and a rice-with- toppings night. Case makes all the meat alternatives, whether it be “sausage, turkee or chickun”. She also employs clever culinary strategies, like using Indian black salt to give the taste and smell of eggs for a planned Mother’s Day Brunch. The club can accommodate diners with allergies if alerted ahead of time. The desserts are elegant: from panna cotta to strawberry sorbet with fresh fruit, to cupcakes with creamy and rich frosting.

Seventh Day Adventists hold the belief that the human body should be cared for properly. Believers abstain from substances like alcohol and tobacco, and maintain a vegetarian diet. While the prime reason of these suppers is to promote health—members of Case’s family have had health issues that have been reversed by a vegetarian diet—another valuable benefit is a boon for both ecology and animal rights. Monthly cooking classes are occasionally offered, and an International Food Festival at the Center is planned for May 19th.

Cape Cod Seventh Day Adventist Church
2736 Route 28, Osterville
@vegetariansupperclub on Facebook