Author Notes: During this hot summer my goal has been to put food on the table without turning on a heat source. This salad is terrific because it provides a protein-rich grain with lots of tasty mix-ins, and absolutely no cooking required. I use #4 bulgar, which is the most coarse grind — it is especially nutty and chewy, and provides a nice counterpoint to the other ingredients. Baby arugula leaves may be used in place of the spinach. When salting remember that the blue cheese is assertive and fairly salty, so taste as you go, you may not need much. —calendargirl
Makes: 4-6 servings
Ingredients
For the Salad
-
1
cup coarse bulgur
-
1
cup cold water (use the same dry measuring cup for the bulgar and the water)
-
1/3
cup roasted, unsalted pistachio kernels
-
1/3
cup sun-dried tomatoes
-
1/3
cup crumbled blue cheese
-
1/2
pound baby spinach leaves
-
coarse kosher or sea salt to taste
For the Dressing
-
1/4
cup best olive oil
-
scant 1/4
cups freshly squeezed lemon juice (Meyer lemons preferred)
-
several
generous grinds fresh black pepper (to taste)
Directions
- Put the bulgur and water in a large bowl, cover and let sit at room temperature until the bulgar has absorbed all the water. This will take 2-3 hours. You can use boiling water instead of cold water and this will speed up the absorption, but if it is just too hot to boil water, use cold tap water and go back to your book.
- When the bulgur has absorbed all the water, add the pistachios, sun-dried tomatoes and spinach.
- Whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice and pepper, add to the grain mixture and toss thoroughly.
- Sprinkle the crumbled blue cheese on top, toss gently and correct the seasoning if necessary.
/981f3575-eca8-49bf-9c5c-b715585ef1ac--2012-08-27_10.39.01.jpg "No-Cook Spinach-Bulgur Salad with Pistachios, Blue Cheese & Sun-Dried Tomatoes 1")
1 of 5
/a1f2d5cc-426a-4da9-96de-f296e2f0d87d--2012-08-27_10.38.34.jpg "No-Cook Spinach-Bulgur Salad with Pistachios, Blue Cheese & Sun-Dried Tomatoes 2")
2 of 5
/cb9c1dbb-d089-4c76-83c2-9d94f6a0ccab--2012-08-27_10.38.34.jpg "No-Cook Spinach-Bulgur Salad with Pistachios, Blue Cheese & Sun-Dried Tomatoes 3")
3 of 5
/79790842-2246-4580-87f2-8e7df3a71227--bulgar.jpg "No-Cook Spinach-Bulgur Salad with Pistachios, Blue Cheese & Sun-Dried Tomatoes 4")
4 of 5
/e3a9ab37-b9e0-44de-a5f1-ee6e8a57232f--2012-08-27_10.38.34.jpg "No-Cook Spinach-Bulgur Salad with Pistachios, Blue Cheese & Sun-Dried Tomatoes 5")
5 of 5
