Americanized Tabbouleh (off the Food Network)

My friend had weekly potlucks and many of them had very specific diets (no dairy, no meat, no fish, vegans, vegetarians, etc). I suppose that financially-detrimental work experience at that vegan company became more than my realization of how gullible I can be around con artists (not exactly uncommon but still....) and became training for foodies with diets I was never able to relate to before. I became really good at making crowd pleaser meals beginning with Americanized tabbouleh. I feel inclined to make that clear because my friend fbed me that my tabbouleh was so unauthentic that it's an entirely new dish. True but then again we're American. So maybe it's American authentic? I uonno...I also don't care.

I got this off of the Food Network from Barefoot Contessa. I know I deviated from the proportions slightly but I'm not exactly sure by how much. The original recipe is all that I can reference and a good template to follow. You can always experiment, deviate, or harness your culinary intuition if you feel fit.

1 cup bulghur wheat (I wanna say I added a little more than specified cuz it seemed like way too much whatever leftover)

1 1/2 cup boiling water

1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (I used more lemon juice right before serving)

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (I used wayyyyyyyyy less)

Salt and pepper to taste

1 cup fresh mint, chopped

1 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped

Persian cucumbers, enough until it appeared colorful and appropriate proportioned aka I don't remember LOL

Same thing for cherry tomatoes, but I cut them in half

Boil water in a pot. Pour in the bulghur wheat. Stir, then leave it to "cook" at room temperature for about 1 hour. Add the mint, parsley, cucumber, tomatoes, salt, and pepper to taste. Mix well. I added a little extra virgin olive oil until the texture seemed appropriate.

Since I was already running ridiculously behind, I transferred this into those clear plastic bags that you use to fill produce at the supermarkets and dashed off. I didn't add lemon until I arrived to the potluck many many hours later and everyone absolutely loved it!

The original recipe also called for scallions but I hate them, so I didn't include them. The order was slightly off, too. You're supposed to add the lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil into the boiling water but that seems weird to me. Water and oil don't mix. Eventually the bulghur wheat will absorb the water but I really had no idea how it would respond to the water and oil, so I chose to leave that task to the end. I also used far less extra virgin olive oil than the recipe called for which I enjoyed, as well as everyone else! Someone even asked me if I had training or cooked professionally. :D

Bulghur and Red Lentil Soup (Vegetarian)

I've been looking at my red lentils which takes far less time to cook and bulghur wheat which only requires water for quite some time now. I decided it's no longer acceptable to look at such easy ingredients to work with and feel overwhelmed and uninterested at the notion of using them as my hunger churns my stomach. So I finally went online and found a recipe that I modified to a heartier version because once I began cooking, I just wanted to add more and more. I got the original recipe from http://www.harnessyourkimchi.com/2009/12/recipe-red-lentil-and-bulgar-wheat-soup.html. You should check the site out. There's some great recipes and the blogger's quirky which I appreciate it.

Since I was still in my lazy mood and wanted the cooking to be done as quickly as possible, I used a lot of canned goods for this recipe. I still found it to be yummy. You can, of course, use fresh ingredients and alter the cooking time. But this is a great choice for those cold winter nights when you'd rather not do anything, yet crave the benefits of something warm and satisfying.

1 cup of rinsed lentils

1/2 cup bulghur wheat

I used however much water I felt was right and my soup came out thicker than thinner but experiment!

1 can of stewed tomatoes, undrained

Salt, pepper, paprika, cumin, and whatever other spices I felt like adding (can't remember exactly)

Juice of 1 lemon

Extra virgin olive oil to taste

A few garlic cloves, minced

Rosemary sprig

Grated some ginger in

Can of carrots, drained

Can of peas, drained

I believe I heated extra-virgin olive oil in a pot and coated the red lentils with it. Then I added water into it. I wanna say enough to slightly cover the lentils but not insanely. I'm sorry I barely remember the recipe. I hope anyone reading this is already familiar with how to cook red lentils. It takes far less time to cook which is why I chose to buy the red ones, anywhere from 20-25 minutes. You want it to boil and then keep it at a simmer.

Once they seemed "ready" or neared ready, I added the tomatoes, seasoning, and the bulghur wheat. When the bulghur wheat puffed and looked different, I threw in the carrots and peas which was near the end. Basically enough to heat it threw. It was during that time that I added garlic and ginger. I just grate it which is beautifully effortless! I also threw in the rosemary sprig. I let it simmer for a bit. Then I adjusted the seasoning to taste. The lemon finished it off beautifully. I did that at the end and added an extra squeeze to every bowl I enjoyed. At the end I removed the intact rosemary sprig for easy clean up. I get to enjoy the flavor of rosemary without the woodsy texture I dislike. Yay!

And this entry is reminding me exactly why I need to post my recipes much much sooner than I actually do! Oh and one more thing - I added more water as it seemed fit. The original recipe called for vegetable stock. I was both lazy, cheap, and out of vegetable stock. I never have any on hand and find that when you season your water insanely and strategically, the flavor will be adequate. :)

Lemon-Scented Quinoa

DISCLAIMER: When I categorize dishes "Vegetarian", I standardize it on the absence of poultry and meat such as chicken, duck, turkey, beef, or pork. I don't consider ingredients such as eggs which come from poultry or seafood vegetarian because I know many vegetarians who eat these ingredients without complaint.

Another photo that doesn't do the dish justice. Remember: Don't judge by aesthetics alone. This was one of the new foods I wanted to try, and I'm glad I did. Most of the other foods were worth the experience, but I didn't enjoy them nearly as much as I did quinoa (pronounced KEEN-WAH). It has a unique bite to it, very unusual. Maybe it's because I haven't tried enough foods, but I've never eaten anything quite like it. So, you have to eat it for yourself to determine whether you like it or not. I think it's one of those foods you either like or dislike. It has a pop to it when you chew it. It's light and a new twist to the standard grains. It's easy to make, affordable (not like standard grains but within most people's budgets), and a one-of-a-kind experience. It's crucial to use a superior quality extra-virgin olive oil for this recipe because a rancid flavor will ruin the entire recipe. Luckily, I didn't learn this from a mistake. I have a great extra-virgin olive oil that's light and sweet, very suitable for this recipe. It's a subtle flavor, but it occurred to me that a bad flavor will really be present in simple recipe like this. I use Marca Verde Extra Virgin Olive Oil. I heard that in a blind study it beat out a $40 or $60 bottle. This dish goes beautifully with Roasted Chicken with Potatoes, Lemon, and Asparagus, a recipe I found on www.marthastewart.com, but I can't seem to access to the recipe right now. The page appears blank. I hope it returns because that was an amazing dish.

1 cup quinoa
1 1/2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil of superior quality
1 tsp grated lemon zest
2 tsp fresh lemon juice

Wash quinoa in three changes of water in a bowl, draining in a sieve each time.

Cook quinoa in a medium pot of boiling salted water (1 tbsp salt for 2 quarts water), uncovered, until almost tender, about 15 minutes. Drain in a sieve, then set sieve over same pot above 1 inch of simmering water (water shouldn't touch the bottom of the sieve). Cover quinoa with a folded kitchen towel (I used a paper towel), then cover sieve with a lid. It's okay if the lid doesn't fit tightly. Steam over simmering water until tender, fluffy, and dry, about 10 minutes. Remove pot from heat and remove lid. Let stand, still covered with towel, about 5 minutes.

Transfer quinoa to a bowl and stir in oil, zest, lemon juice, and 1/4 tsp salt.

Onigiri (Japanese Rice Balls)

DISCLAIMER: When I categorize dishes "Vegetarian", I standardize it on the absence of poultry and meat such as chicken, duck, turkey, beef, or pork. I don't consider ingredients such as eggs which come from poultry or seafood vegetarian because I know many vegetarians who eat these ingredients without complaint.

My friend wanted me to make onigiri for her, so I decided to practice. Onigiri is Japanese rice balls. You mix rice with furikake (Japanese rice seasoning), cooked salmon, or whatever you feel like. You mix the ingredients together and shape them into triangles. So, why they're called balls, which are round is a mystery for me, too. I'm not a fan of cooked salmon, so I used what's nothing more than "fancy furikake." It's a marketing gimmick. It's packaged differently, and there's a picture of onigiri on the cover. I purchased it because I like the flavor, and I couldn't find that flavor for cheaper. This one is umeboshi (Japanese pickled plum) flavored.

4 cups of freshly cooked Japanese-style rice (I recommend Kokuho Rose brand)
Filling of choice such as bonito flakes moistened with soy sauce, flaked, cooked, salted salmon, chopped up tsukemono (pickles), or my personal favorite: furikake

Wet your hands with cold water so that the rice won't stick to you. Sprinkle adequate amount of filling over rice and mix in with your hands. Taste test it to make sure that there's enough flavor. Add more, if necessary. Then, take enough rice into your hands to form the triangular shape shown on the photo. Use your thumb and insert it into the bottom of the triangle. Add 1 teaspoon or so of seasoning inside and cover it up, again. (This is a recommendation I chose to ignore because the amount of seasoning you add varies on the intensity of the flavor. I found that adding 1 teaspoon was too salty. I also felt that the flavor of the furikake was adequate without adding a little extra). Continue following the same steps until all of the rice is used up. I made little balls with the remainder rice.

NOTE: There were other instructions I selectively ignored. It's suggested that you lightly salt your hands after wetting them to keep the rice from sticking. I felt uncomfortable doing that because I feel that the water keeps the rice from sticking well enough. Plus, I don't know exactly how much salt to add on my hands. I've had success in the past, but I've also had success making onigiri without using salt. I don't like the idea of using a method that doesn't work sufficiently enough for my standards that can ruin the entire recipe. Overly salty onigiri is no treat. And there's no recovering from that. I did add some filling inside some of the onigiri (the part of the instruction about inserting your thumb into the bottom of the triangle). I found the flavor too intense, so I skipped that step for the rest of them. I just don't like tasting the seasoning in one center but not everywhere else. The suggestion probably works better for salmon or another type of filling that isn't as salty. I've heard that the only way to make onigiri is with hot rice, but I've also heard the contrary. I personally prefer making onigiri with warm or cool but still soft rice. Trying to make onigiri with hot rice makes mixing in the ingredients properly a challenge. I don't like my hands burning especially if it makes me feel like I'm doing an inadequate job. Sushi uses cold rice. I don't see how this would be any different. As long as the rice is still sticky and soft, I think it's fine. If you want to eat it warm, I think it's great to wrap nori (seaweed) around the rice. But I like eating it cold because I find it refreshing. Plus, I think it looks nicer without the odd looking nori around it.