Virtual Potluck: Tasty and Healthy New Year Challenge

Once again, we’ve teamed up with California Olive Ranch and a slew of fabulous bloggers to bring you a month worth of tasty and healthy dishes to kick the New Year off right. With the help of 12 wonderful food bloggers, we’re having a virtual potluck through January to inspire you in the kitchen with recipes using our whole grain products with California Olive Ranch olive oils for appetizers, sides, main dishes and desserts. If you’ve vowed to eat better for 2012, you are in for a real treat!

What is a virtual potluck?

The group of 12 bloggers post about a specific theme on a particular day. It’s not a progressive dinner party or a planned menu. Each brings to the table what they’re good at, within the parameters of the theme. It’s a true potluck of posts.

And then, like party guests everywhere, the bloggers talk about the party in anticipation of what will be there (on Twitter, Facebook, or wherever we happen to hang out) and talk about it while the event is running.

Special thanks to the Groovy Foody for this nice explanation.

Who is participating?

Each of these bloggers has a special take on good food and what it means to them. We’re so excited to be working with each of them and I simply cannot wait to see what they come up with.

The Challenge:

We challenged each blogger to pair our products (left) with California Olive Ranch oils (right) for each of these courses over the month of January. Some may branch off from this schedule, so don’t be surprised to find different pairings or different types of dishes (the more the merrier, in my opinion!).

Week 1: Appetizer – Just the Beginning…
Hard White Whole Wheat Flour – Arbequina Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Week 2: Supportive Side Dish
Grandé Whole Grains Blend – Miller’s Blend Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Week 3: The Main Event
Quinoa Grain – Arbosana Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Week 4: Ahhh….Dessert
Whole Wheat Pastry Flour – Everyday Fresh California Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Join the fun and watch our Facebook page to get links to all the great recipes.

Wait, there’s more:

Each week, these bloggers will challenge you to find (and use) the code word posted in the contest tab labeled “Virtual Potluck” on the California Olive Ranch Facebook page. Each week, each blogger will pick a single winner to receive a pack of the featured products from Bob’s Red Mill and California Olive Ranch. That’s right- four weeks, 12 winners each week! That’s like 48 chances to win! We’ll share links to the blogs on our Facebook page so you know where to find them.

The virtual potluck starts tomorrow, so be on the watch for recipes, code words and some healthy inspiration!