Tabbouleh Thursdays

I try to be good and bring my lunch from home on work days, but there some days when I just don’t feel like eating what’s waiting for me in the lunchroom fridge. I make a deal with myself on these days: I can go out to eat, but only if I walk (as long as it’s not raining or searingly hot). A 10-minute stroll is all it takes to reach a shopping center occupied by all sorts of tempting options. I try to fight off the urge to get a cheeseburger or jumbo froyo, opting instead for a big salad or the ready-to-eat section of Whole Foods. One of the dishes they seem to only offer on Thursdays is a flavor-packed bulgur tabbouleh that has quickly become my favorite summertime lunch. Here’s my attempt at recreating it.

Tabbouleh
8 ounces quick-cooking bulgur (I used Trader Joe’s 10 Minute Bulgur)
4 medium tomatoes, seeds removed, diced
4 medium Persian cucumbers, diced
1 bunch flat leaf parsley, chopped
1 bunch mint, chopped
2 green onions, dark green parts thinly sliced
Juice of 2 large lemons (about ⅓ cup)
3 tablespoons olive oil

Cook bulgur according to package instructions. Combine cooked bulgur with tomatoes, cucumbers, parsley, mint and green onions. Whisk lemon juice and olive oil in a small bowl before stirring into bulgur mixture.

Keeping cans of cannellini beans close

I try not to play favorites, but when it comes to beans, I absolutely love cooking with cannellinis. These white kidney beans are just so versatile. Give any or all of these three quick, no-cook cannellini recipes a try and you’ll see what I mean.

Cannellini Bean Salad 
2 15-ounce cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
2 cups roasted red bell peppers
2 cloves garlic juice of half a lemon
Chopped flat-leaf parsley, for garnish

Put peppers, garlic and lemon juice in a blender and process until smooth. Stir dressing in with beans in a bowl and top with parsley.

Pesto White Bean Dip
1 15-ounce can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
¼ cup pesto
Juice of half a lemon
Possible dippers: Pita chips

Everything goes into the blender for a quick spin, until smooth.

Red Pepper White Bean Dip 
1 15-ounce can cannellini beans
1 cup roasted red bell pepper
1 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
Possible dippers: Carrot and celery sticks

All ingredients go into the blender. Purée, adding a little more balsamic if you’d like to thin the dip a bit.

May 31 Salad: Aaaaaaaand done!

Eating salad for a whole month is delicious yet challenging. There have been some days where the last thing I want to do after work is come up with something fresh and blog-friendly for dinner. I went through a lot of lettuce, tomatoes and English cucumber this month! I ended up making more of my own salad dressings than anticipated (woo!) but also dined out a little more than I could have, given the self-imposed challenge. But still, I ended up with 31 entries and 31 salads, which makes me happy.

With that said, here’s the final dish of One More Taste’s Salad Month. It’s my take on Salade Niçoise. I omitted a couple items (didn’t feel like eating potatoes, and didn’t see any eye-catching tomatoes at the supermarket) but did toss something on the plate that’s a little foreign to me — anchovies. Not sure they’re my favorite fish, but I can appreciate why they end up on this salad, as they’re oily and salty and add a good little oomph to the plate.

That delicious carnage in the center of the plate is some grilled tuna, brushed with olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper. Just put that hunka fish on the grill and give it a couple minutes, over high heat, on each side.

The non-fishy components of this salad include romaine lettuce (making use of what’s in the fridge), hard-boiled egg, blanched green (and yellow) beans and a quick dressing made up of (roughly) a tablespoon lemon juice(what I could squeeze out of half a lemon), little less than ¼ cup olive oil (bottom of the bottle) and a couple dashes of salt.

Challenge completed. Great success. Time to go eat a Porterhouse...

May 12 Salad

 

I came home from work wanting breakfast for dinner, and this is what I came up with. Over-easy egg, arugula, olive oil, fresh lemon juice and a little dusting of pepper on top. While it was no biscuits and gravy, this salad was still quite tasty.

May 10 Salad: Rocking the rocket

I bought a bag of arugula, otherwise known as rocket, at the store the other day. It’s got a sharp, peppery taste, and I love it. A bowl of arugula, grape tomatoes and parmesan shavings tasted great with a little bit of olive oil and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice on top.