Summer Wonderful

 With summer winding to a slow soft close and the temperatures still warmer than I like 

I try to cook with all of the garden stragglers

 The tomatoes were especially sweet and plentiful this year 

and my favorite was a small orange cherry.   

I planted a wonderful variety of radish called D'Avignon.  

It is spicy and flavorful and wonderfully crunchy. 

 I've used it on every thing from sandwiches to pizza.

 These radish are really beautiful too

 They pop up from the ground like little red footballs 

and continue to ripen above the soil.

 Some of the onions I dried and others I used fresh

through out the summer

 So to keep the kitchen cool and use up 

what the garden has so generously shared 

I thought I'd make a

Tabbouleh salad

 Tabbouleh is a Lebanese salad made with bulgur wheat, herbs and tomatoes.  

It generally has more herbs than grain 

but you can play around with this recipe to suit your taste.

 The dressing consists of just olive oil and lemon juice...and don't forget salt and fresh pepper

 For the greens I used wild arugula 

which I have tons of right now

 Some basil and mint

 and lots of parsley

 Adding some radish is not really traditional but hey...use what you have!

Cucumber is a nice addition and green scallions are optional 

but I had them, so in they went!

 Prepare your bulgar according to the package directions so you have about 2 cups 

 Then chop, chop chop the rest of your veggies

 I had about 5 cups of veggies and about 4 cups of greens and herbs

 Mix it all together and add the bulgar

Finish off with olive oil...about 1/4 cup and the juice of 2 lemons

Season to taste

I actually like this a bit more acidic so I added some champagne vinegar too

  Let this rest for about an hour to allow the bulgar to absorb all of the flavors 

Serve in butter lettuce cups with grilled naan bread or pita chips

It's just that simple

hope your summer has been wonderful

xo

kelley