Great day of Great food :)

A few weeks ago we had a potluck get together. One lady brought the most delicious pita mix that my friend and I just HAD to have the recipe for. So today we finally made it for lunch and boy was it good :) (and boy did it ever make a lot!!)

Tabbouleh

 (Wheat Berry Salad)

§        3 cups dry wheat berries (We just used a small box of couscous - we boiled it in water but next     time will likely do chicken or vegetable stock instead)

§        1 medium white onion finely diced

§        2 ribs of celery finely diced (optional)

§        ½ bunch of cilantro finely chopped - I detest fresh cilantro but put it in anyways - you can't tell!!!

§        1 pint grape or cherry tomatoes, cut each in half lengthwise. (Diced roma tomatoes works too.) - we used 1/2 a pint because I don't like tomatoes, but in this you hardly notice they are there.

§        ¼ cup lemon juice

§        3 tablespoon canola oil

§        1 tsp salt (or to taste)

1.    Soak wheat berries overnight in lots of cold water. (The wheat will more than double in size while soaking.) Slowly cook wheat berries until they begin to pop out of their coatings and are chewy to the tooth - the wheat will more than double in bulk when cooking. Rinse cooked wheat in cold water until all heat is gone. 

  In a large bowl combine onions, celery, cilantro, tomatoes and lemon juice. Toss gently so as not to mash the tomatoes.

5.    Add as much cooked wheat as you see the above ingredients will take.

6.    Before serving pour the oil over the tabbouleh and mix well.

N Note:  I like to combine everything except the wheat first to see how much wheat to use.  The cooked wheat can always be frozen to use another time, or some people like hot cooked wheat with milk and sugar, just like porridge.

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     MAST-E XIAR

(YOGURT DIP)

1 quart container of plain yogurt       

1 English cucumber

1 bunch of fresh dill or 3 Tablespoon of dried dill or crushed mint

Salt to taste

3 large cloves of fresh garlic, minced

§        Peel and dice cucumber

§        Peel and mash garlic with salt (we did not mash with salt)

§        If you are using the fresh dill; remove stem and chop

§        Pour yogurt into a dish

§        Add cucumbers, dill and garlic

§        Stir well

As an appetizer for a party, use mini pitas. We used large ones (each had half) for lunch today and it was great! Next time we plan to use the handy chopper for the garlic, cucumber, and dill instead of chopping it all. :) You could also just mix it all up like a salad and skip the bread/pita altogether - or throw in some ripped up pita and eat it that way (definitely less messy lol)



SERIOUSLY SCRUMPTIOUS RATING: 5 STARS!!!