My craving for fresh and light dishes in the midst of our bleak Kansas City midwinter (three days in a row of single-digit temperatures!) continues. So for a fun and healthy recipe this week, I decided to make a batch of delicious tabbouleh!

Pretty much everything about this dish screams “fresh”! It’s packed with fresh herbs, scallions, tomatoes, lemon juice, olive oil, and some oh-so-healthy bulgur. From what I’ve read (although I’m sure some will beg to differ), “authentic” tabbouleh has a much higher herbs to bulgur ratio — which I happen to love. But if you’d like more, feel free to double the bulgur in this recipe.

Definitely a delicious, flavorful, and (yes) fresh recipe! It works perfectly as a side or main dish — or feel free to experiment and even use it on crostinis, to top some hummus, or in a soup (recipe coming soon). Enjoy!

Tabbouleh Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup bulgur (a.k.a. cracked wheat)
• 2 cups of water or chicken stock
• 2-3 cups of curly parsley, finely chopped
• 1/2 cup of mint, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup of scallions, finely chopped
• 3-4 roma tomatoes, chopped
• 2 Tbsp of olive oil
• juice of half of one lemon (or more to taste)
• 1/2 tsp salt

Method:

In a large bowl, pour 2 cups of boiling water (or chicken stock) over the bulgur. Let it sit for 30-60 minutes until softened, and then strain the bulgur through a fine-mesh strainer.

Then combine the prepared bulgur, parsley, mint, scallions, and tomatoes in a large bowl. Add oil and lemon juice, and stir until well mixed. Add salt to taste.

Serve immediately or refrigerate for up to one day.

Ali’s Tip:

Feel free to also add in some diced cucumbers or extra diced onion if you’d like!