Perfect for Potlucks: Incan Quinoa Delight

Do you have a go-to dish to bring to a summer potluck? Or when someone asks you to bring a savory dish to a potluck, do you freeze? Its easy enough to bring cookies or brownies to a casual summer get together, but sometimes its harder to choose what main dish to bring. I love attending potlucks because I like seeing all the creative dishes that people bring, that might inspire new recipes for me to create when I get home. When trying to decide what to bring to a potluck, I usually look for a dish that:

• Can be served at room temperature
• Doesnt have meat so I dont have to worry about sickening anyone if it is left out for several hours, and so vegetarians like my daughter will have more options
• Is light and healthy to balance out all the fried chicken, macaroni and cheese, and aforementioned cookies and brownies that others will likely bring (and that I find so hard to resist)
• Is colorful so it will tempt people to spoon it onto their plates (my goal is to go home with an empty dish, rather than lugging a potluck reject back home)
• Has lots of flavor so it will stand out among the crowd.

Six OClock Scramble member Michele Houghton sent me her healthy and flavorful quinoa salad recipe that fits all the above requirements, and can even be made a couple of days in advance. Try to find the Inca Red quinoa, sold by Ancient Harvest, which makes the dish even prettier. Quinoa is an ancient Incan whole grain grown in South America, that is popular because its so healthy, cooks quickly, and has more protein than typical grains.  If you havent tried it yet this is a great way to dive in.  You may enjoy the mixture folded into warm tortillas, too, topped with slices of creamy avocado.