Kristel's Kitchen

Potlucks and Partnerships

For those of you who follow my blog, you are surely aware that I spent the last month eating/cooking/living as a raw/living foodist. The detox was quite an experience, so if you haven’t read about it, be sure to check out week one, two, three and four of this raw/living food detox I did with the support of Crudessence.

In addition to that, if you paid attention to detail, you may have noticed that I hinted at a potential new collaboration for Kristel’s Kitchen. Every once in a while with my running buddies we get together for a mid-week run and potluck. Lucky me, because of all my tweeting and networking, I made friends with Potluck.li, who is developing a site that will help to effectively plan and coordinate potlucks. Once a month I will be feature a recipe under the category Cooking for a Crowd with Potluck.li and I am flattered that they have designated me as their Recipe Guru. I am ecstatic about this collaboration and look forward to using this application in the coming weeks! In the meantime, do not hesitate to reach out to us for all your potlucks questions, dilemmas and logistics – it is our duty to help you! For more information about Potluck.li, click here.

Now back to cooking…

 

As you can imagine, the last 30 days posed a bit of a challenge since I was the only one in the group that was detox-ing. Of course the dish had to feed the runners and abide by the Mexican theme that was chosen for the evening. So this is how I came up with this recipe. It is hearty (read – feeds hungry athletes), festive, fresh, vegan and raw/living food. For all of you planning or attending a Cinco de Mayo party, this recipe will satisfy almost any dietary restriction attending the party.

Jalapeno-Lime Quinoa Salad

• 1 cup quinoa
• 1 medium red onion, finely diced
• 1 zucchini or cucumber, diced
• 1 red bell pepper, cored, seeds removed and diced
• ½ cup sundried tomatoes, sliced
• 1 fresh tomato, diced
• 1 bunch arugula

A note on quinoa:  

Quinoa is often referred to as an ancient grain with its origin in South America. I often use it to replace rice, couscous and for those who are Celiac or intolerant/allergic to gluten, it is a fantastic substitute. When cooked it is fluffy yet crunchy. To cook quinoa, the proportions are more or less the same as rice: one part quinoa and two parts water. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat to simmer until the water is absorbed – about 15 to 20 minutes. For those who want to go the complete raw/living food version, you need to rinse and soak the quinoa overnight to sprout (some will say only 4 hours soaking but I didn’t find it was long enough). Rinse and strain before using. For both the cooking and soaking methods, you will notice that the germ will separate from the quinoa grain – that is supposed to happen!

In a large bowl combine all vegetables with the cooked or sprouted quinoa. Set aside.

For the Jalapeno-Lime dressing:

• 1 jalapeno, cored and seeded
• 2 garlic clove s
• 1 lime, flesh and juice
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• Salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth. Add more olive oil until desired tanginess – the more oil you add the less sour the dressing).

When you are ready to serve, pour the dressing over the quinoa vegetable mixture and toss.

This easily serves a crowd of 8-10 people depending on how many of these end up having this dish as their main.

So next time you need to get organized for a potluck, reach out to Potluck.li and yours truly, the Recipe Guru!

May 5, 2011 Posted by KAS | Cooking for a Crowd with Potluck.li, Recipes | Cinco de Mayo Recipes, Jalapeno-Lime Dressing, Jalapeno-Lime Quinoa Salad, Living Food Recipes, Potluck, Potluck Ideas, Potluck Menu, Potluck Recipes, Potluck.li, Quinoa Recipes, Rawfood Recipes, Vegan Recipes, Veggy Quinoa Salad | 2 Comments