cru·di·tés   [kroo-di-tey; Fr. kry-dee-tey]

noun ( used with a singular or plural verb ) French Cookery .
an appetizer consisting of a variety of raw vegetables, usually cut into strips or bite-size pieces, and served with a dip.

The best kept secret at QL.

Many afternoons each week, our real food chef, whips of a batch of a homemade dip and a platter of fresh chopped pesticide-free veggies. This afternoon “Crud” (it rhymes with mud, but tastes a whole lot better) gets us through the day. It’s the afternoon pick-me-up (ranking close to Propane gifts that keep on giving) that feeds our brains and our bodies. Crud helps us figure it out!

Make Crud at home.

It is super easy, healthy, and delicious - so go for it and get creative! Slice up any veggies you like. Some QL favorites include carrots, celery, cucumbers, jicama and bell peppers. Then make your favorite dip. Here is a base recipe for our delicious humus.

Ingredients
* 1/2 pound of dry garbanzo beans
* 3 T of tahini or 5 T of sesame seeds
* 1/2 a lemon, juiced
* 1 t of real salt
* 2 cloves of garlic
* 1/4 of an onion
* 2 T of cold pressed olive oil

Instructions
Soak the garbanzo beans in water, covered on the counter for 24 hours, changing the water once or twice. When the garbanzos are ready to cook, change the water again, bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and cook on low for an hour or more until they are cooked through but not mushy. Drain, rinse and allow to cool. Then put all the ingredients into your food processor and blend until smooth. Adding extra lemon or olive oil will make your humus creamier, adding tahini or sesame seeds will make it nuttier.

Variations on the Basic Humus, add any of these to the food processor for a new flavor
* Pesto Humus: a packed handful of basil leaves, another 2T of olive oil, and a small handful of walnuts
* Pickle Humus: a whole cucumber and a teaspoon of dill
* Roasted Red Pepper Humus: broil a red pepper, peel off skin, remove seeds, use the meat
* Black Bean & Avocado Humus: soaked and cooked black beans and a chopped avocado