Eat This!

I was talking about the rules of Kosher with a group of co-workers. They just wanted to know the basics, what is allowed, what isn't, and why. One of the things they kept asking about was other than certain forbidden foods, why were there restrictions on how it was cooked. I tried steering around the question a bit, but eventually I just said the truth - that some of the rules are meant to prevent Jews from mingling with non-Jews.

Was I oversensitive? Is that a big deal? Should I not worry about the "elitist" overtones of the Halacha? Or perhaps I don't even know the Halacha properly, and there are other reasons why we have these rules of Bishul Akum.

If I want to make a Kiddush Hashem, how do I convey the beauty of Halacha without sounding apologetic?