Cracked Wheat and Nectarine Salad

Well it's definitely hot. It's so hot you don't feel like eating (shocking I know) but that's what salads are for. This one just requires boiling 1 cup of water - not so bad. Plus it's healthy it has Cracked Baby Cracked* Wheat in it.

Cracked Wheat and Nectarine Salad (adapted from Cooking Light)

1 c uncooked bulgar (cracked wheat)
1 c boiling water
1 1/2 c thinly sliced nectarines (about 3)
1/2 c sliced green onions (or minced shallot)
1/4 c fresh parsley
3 T olive oil
3 T white balsamic vinegar
1/4 c pistachios (rough chop)
salt/pepper

Combine bulgar and 1 cup of boiling water. Cover with plastic wrap or tight sealing lid and let stand 30-40 minutes.

Stir in nectarines and remaining ingredients. Toss well. Sprinkle nuts on top.

If I'm using this as a main summer meal, I add some crumbled goat cheese. I didn't have the green onions so I used shallots instead. Chives would be a nice substitute too (but we didn't plant chives this year because we couldn't find any).

*A David Bowie reference. Here's the camp version of Cracked Actor from 1983. I couldn't find a better version sorry. The song really starts about around 1.40 or so - just skip to that part.

Comments

New Kid on the Block

So here's a picture of the new kid on the block. Ain't she a beauty? It's a Blomberg . They are fairly new to the US. They have been around in Europe for quite a while. I really liked the design. I've been dying to have a freezer on the bottom. With the old refrigerator I would constantly lose brain cells by hitting my head on the freezer will poking around in the refrigerator. It really makes sense to have the refrigerator on top - that is where you spend most of your time. When we bought the old one, it was an emergency situation. The prior one was leaking on the floor and was no longer cooling. Fifteen years ago the freezer on the bottom was just starting to get popular but we were in no situation to wait for delivery. We had to take what they had on hand. Now the freezer on the bottom is by no means unique. What is - is this freezer's design. There are 3 compartments in the freezer. I used to have a chest freezer in the basement and everything would get los...

Mr. Boston

Since we were discussing cocktails, I thought I would discuss Mr. Boston . The Sous Chef has his father's Mr. Boston and then the girls one year for Christmas got him the new version. They are different enough that you need to keep both of them. We had once thought about working our way through the book but then decided that probably wasn't a good idea. We have found some really tasty treats though. Old Mr. Boston/New Mr. Boston Here is one of them: Banana Foster (from New Mr. Boston) 2 scoops vanilla ice cream 1 1/2 oz spiced rum 1/2 oz banana liqueur 1 medium banana cinnamon Combine ingredients in blender. Blend until smooth. Pour into a large glass and sprinkle with cinnamon I guess there is one improvement with the new Mr. Boston - the index is a bit better. In the old version, you cannot look up the drink by name. You can only look it up by liquor - which doesn't really help you out if you don't know what is in say a grasshopper and just wa...

Almond & Jam Tarts

These are quite impressive looking but very easy to make - especially if you buy ground almonds. The really nice part is that you just press the dough into the tart pans. The only rolling is for the cut outs. Peach Jam Currant Jam Almond & Jam Tarts (Adapted from Bon Appetit ) Makes 2 tarts 7 oz (approx 2 cups) Ground Almonds or Hazelnuts* 4 1/2 c flour 2 1/4 t kosher salt 1 1/2 t baking powder 2 t nutmeg 1 1/2 c sugar 3 sticks butter 6 T heavy cream 3 egg yolks 1 t almond extract 1 Earl Grey tea bag 1 1/2 c apricot jam** 1 1/2 c plum jam** 2 t orange zest 1 egg 1/4 c raw sugar Mix almonds, flour, salt, baking powder and nutmeg in a bowl. Set aside. Cream butter and sugar together. Add egg yolks, cream, and almond extract. Mix well. Gradually add flour/almond mixture and mix until combined. Divide dough into 3 equal parts, flatten 1 into disk and chill for at least 1 hour. Press the remaining two doughs into tart pans cover and chill....

Chocolate-It's What's for Dinner

Search This Blog