tabbouleh

Paradise is calling to me. It is whispering my name softly, trying to coax me into subtle submission, which won’t take long the more I drool over this. If only I could convince my boss that two weeks without me wouldn’t be so bad. But for now I have to pacify my longing for the hot sand and cool ocean by recreating the Mediterranean at home.

I have had many different varieties of tabbouleh over the last several years and after taking bits from each and tweaking them, I created a tabbouleh that is neither mushy nor dry. I like to taste the zip of lemon as I bite into a ripened tomato, or feel the soft bulgar grain paired with the crunch of a cucumber without having it sitting in a puddle of olive oil and lemon juice.

In most recipes the parsley and mint are battling each other for the top flavor component — I have declared parsley the winner. The supermarket also seems to be have issues with their cherry tomatoes. There was at least one tomato molding in every container. The store, however, seemed to think that keeping them on the shelves to be sold to unsuspecting shoppers was an acceptable thing to do. This resulted in the purchase of the best looking tomatoes I could find – compari. They added juiciness without the mealiness that some tomatoes carry, though cherry or grape tomatoes would have been preferrable. I also chose to double the lemon action, since I like my tabbouleh with some twang.

Chopping vegetables for my Mediterranean recreation sent me reeling back to my daydream -  the white cutting board turned into white cotton sheets on my beach bed, and the bulgar wheat transformed into soft sand on the beach. Yes, I was having a bit of a tussle staying focused – which can be dangerous when you have a sharp object in your hand cutting into tomatoes.  If it took me an hour to prepare, perhaps I would have been a little more determined to stay on track, but within thirty minutes the meal was made and placed in the fridge to chill until Josh came home. Meaning you can dream about your Greek paradise and still have dinner on the table in a jiff.

Tabbouleh

Serves 4

1 1/2 cups boiling water
1 cup bulgar wheat
1/2 cup freshly squeeze lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 cup minced scallions, white and green parts
3 1/2 cup fresh parsley
1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, diced
2 cups halved cherry tomatoes

In a heat-proof bowl, pour boiling water over the bulgar wheat. Add the 1/4 cup lemon juice, olive oil, and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt. Stir. Cover with plastic wrap and allow the bulgur to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes to 1 hour, or until soft.

Meanwhile, add scallions, parsley, cucumber, tomatoes, remaining 2 teaspoons salt, and pepper in a large bowl. Add reaming 1/4 cup lemon juice. Gently stir. Cover with plastic wrap and set in fridge to chill until bulgar is ready.

Once bulgar is softened (there should be no liquid left in the bowl), add it to the bowl with parsley and tomatoes. Gently stir together. Cover and chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Serve with pita bread and hummus.