Now onto today's long-overdue post, which is sadly lacking in a photo of the dish described below, but this is where imaginations come in handy. I do have several gratuitous pictures of the girls, though! :)
Sometimes I wonder whether I’ll ever truly leave the potluck phase of life. It was a no-brainer right after college, when we held potlucks in our first apartments because we were broke – I’m convinced that potlucks and happy hour buffets accounted for the majority of calories we consumed during that period (nachos bar at the Irish Times, anyone?). We showed off our newly acquired cooking skills (I’m still nostalgic about a mozzarella, basil, caramelized onion and sundried tomato-stuffed bread I used to make) and ate off mismatched plates. Later, coming home from the Peace Corps, we were broke again and eternally hungry from never getting quite enough food in our villages (actually it was often too much food, just not the foods we craved!). Stateside potlucks became a regular event where we commiserated about re-entry culture shock and saved our pennies for grad school.
After that, I seem to remember a few brief years of living
the high life – eating in nice restaurants or getting takeout (even, gasp,
several times a week!) and ordering expensive, complicated drinks at chic bars.
Somehow over the last five years or so, potlucks have snuck up on me once
again. I think it started with the economic downturn – fully catered holiday
parties at work morphed into “dessert competitions” where everyone had to bring
something from home. Then it was vegan holiday celebrations (not a fun crowd to
hang with), classroom get-togethers (no nuts, please!), church coffee hours,
community meetings and the like. We are definitely back in potluck land
once again.
It’s not that I mind potlucks so much. Aside from the
guarantee that I’ll eat more than I need to - buffet syndrome - I enjoy the
low-key atmosphere, the nice variety of food, the overabundance of dessert
options, the chance to converse about random topics with people I don’t know
very well and won’t remember the name of the next time I run into them. The
problem is that I never decide what to make until the last minute, and it
usually turns out badly. Something I’ve never made before (like the brownie “bites”
last week that I overcooked and couldn’t pry out of the mini-muffin pan). Something
I’ve never transported before (tamales on a platter with no raised edge – car seat
disaster). Something that looks a little weird and gets completely ignored
(hibiscus iced tea with the blossoms still floating in it; chilequile casserole
made with blue corn tortilla chips). Something that takes way longer to make than I think
it will and ensures that the hour just before the potluck will be very unpleasant for everyone
in the house (handmade spring rolls).
Only the other day, when I literally had two potlucks back
to back (bringing the week’s total to three, not counting the one I begged out
of), did I finally happen upon the perfect potluck dish: Moroccan-Spiced Quinoa Pilaf. It’s easy and inexpensive to make with ordinary pantry ingredients, tastes good whether warm, room temp or chilled, and is both vegan and gluten free. My kids even like it
enough to take a few bites just before dashing over to the dessert table. I
doubt this is something that would go over very well if we lived in, say, the
Midwest, but around here it holds its own among the rest of the potluck
offerings. The recipe is based on one from the Fall section of the Clean Foods
cookbook, with a few significant changes. Give it a try, and happy potlucking!
Moroccan-Spiced Quinoa Pilaf
- 1-1/2 cups quinoa, rinsed in a fine-mesh colander
- 2-1/4 cups water
- pinch salt
Bring the water to boil in a medium sauce pan and add the rinsed quinoa and salt. Cover and reduce heat to simmer for 15 minutes.
- 1 T olive oil
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground ginger
- 1/4 tsp coriander
- 1/8 tsp turmeric
- 3/4 tsp cumin
Heat the olive oil in a large medium skillet and saute the onion for about 5 minutes or until translucent. Stir in the spices and let cook one minute, adding a little bit of water when the spices stick. Turn off the heat.
- 1/2 cup raisins
- 1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1/4 cup toasted, sliced almonds
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley or cilantro
- salt and pepper to taste
When the quinoa is finished cooking, gently fold it into the onion and spice mixture. Stir in the remaining ingredients and serve hot, warm or cold.
Last of all...these pictures were all taken at Sophia's recent "7 & 1/2 Birthday Party" - a fun way to make up for her lack of birthday parties thus far (poor summer birthday kids). Before letting them loose at the cupcake decorating station, I challenged the kids to create silly vegetable creatures... and spotted more than a few of them nibbling in the process - who says you can't get kids to eat vegetables at a birthday party, ha!
