Minty Quinoa Tabouleh

The Mint in the garden exploded in the last few weeks. and the naughty parsley city was already needing a drastic depopulation.

Ah Tabouleh! 

Q: what does a Gluten free girl do without burghul ?

A: Quinoa. ( Keen-wa )

This South American grain-like wonder! Its actually a seed that is closer relative to spinach and Swish Chard.

It is a recently rediscovered ancient "grain" once considered "the gold of the Incas." Being high in protein, it sustains energy and gives you that pep in your step.

Its nutty and crunchy and works brilliantly in this recipe.

This makes 8 cups of goodness. So unless you REALLY like tabouleh: Halve it.

In your posession:

1.5 Cups Quinoa

Salt

1.5 Cups Seeded & Finely diced Tomato

1 Cup Finely chopped Parsley

1 Cup diced Cucumber.

.5 Cup Thinly sliced scallion greens.

.5 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

6tbsp Lemon juice

.25 tsp Ground cumin

.25 tsp Ground cinnamon 

.5 Cup Finely chopped fresh mint.

                                                              

• Rinse Quinoa. Get rid of all the icky bits.
• Bring Quinoa, .5 tsp Salt and 3 cups of water to boil in med saucepan- High voltage! cover and simmer til water is absorbed. Quinoa cooks a little like rice: It will be translucent and tender when cooked. (10-15 mins)
• Make fluffy motions with a fork. Think aeration. and turn out onto baking sheet to cool. 
• Fluff it again when cool. just for good measure.. and added fluffiness. ( and because its a good word) Transferring to a large bowl couldn't hurt either.
• Add  tomato...parsley...cucumber..  scallion ( that's a nice word also) ..oil...lemon juice...cumin....cinnamon and 1 tsp salt. Toss well. (Creativity should be dominant in this section... add more cumin if so the desire...)
• Mingling. Like at a party... let the flavours dance. Not essential.. but over night works a treat. Not everyone has over night to attend to the tabouleh party however. A siesta in the fridge will do.
• Before serving: Let sit at room temp for a while. Stir in the mint. Add more oil and salt...If you like more oil and salt.

 Easy Peasy. Lemon Squeezy.

oh! and I in nooooo way take credit for this recipe. Merely the poetic license and quaint observations. If you would like to see the 'real' ( less fun) version- "Fine cooking: fresh" Published by The Taunton. Just saying.

and in this i say good bye.
xo Bryanna Pearl