I have not posted a recipe for a long time(i.e. there is only one other recipe on this blog) and I realized it was time for a second recipe. This is a great potluck recipe because 1)you can triple the amounts 2)it tastes good at room temp 3)it is VERY easy to make.4)It can be eaten by vegans or people eating kosher meat or both
I got it off of a website called "Two Heads of Lettuce" that evidently caters to Jewish people in their mid twenties who go to a lot of potlucks. The title is supposed to be humorous and involves some joke I don't fully get about how old people(i.e. my age) used to make recipes that involved heads of lettuce. Anyway.... I may be too old to get the joke, but I tried the recipe and it was great.
Ofcourse, this version includes my own additions and subtractions and I take full responsiblity for it.
NB: My version looks a lot prettier than the generic picture due to the colorful dried fruits I have added to the recipe.
1 cup of dry french lentils(hold shape better than brown ones)
1 cup of raw bulgur wheat.
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tbs fresh mint, chopped
1/2 cup fresh parsley--curley, chopped fine
3 scallions, chopped(top and bottom included)
1/4 cup kalamata olives, chopped
1/2-1 cup chopped toasted walnuts
A few handfuls of dried cranberries
A few handfuls of dried apricots, chopped
Salt and pepper, to taste
Procedure:
Cover dry lentils with water in a small pot and bring to a boil; then reduce heat and simmer until tender about 15 minutes. Drain.
Place bulgur in a bowl and pour in 1 cup boiling water. Cover tightly and allow to sit for 15 minutes, until water is absorbed and bulgur is soft.(obviously these two steps involve the same 15 minutes)
Mix all remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Add cooked bulgur and lentils. Mix thoroughly. Refrigerate.
Can be served at room temperature and gets better with age.
You can mix this up with tomatoes, cucumbers, red peppers, etc but I recommend keeping them separate as they don't keep as well as the base. If you want, at the last minute you can toss in a good Israeli salad and/or feta cheese to the amount you think will be consumed at that meal. Or just serve as is and hope someone else brings a salad. But no heads of lettuce!
1 comment:
This first post from "Two Heads of Lettuce" explains the joke (the post is by BZ, blogger at www.mahrabu.blogspot.com):
When The Jewish Catalog was written in 1973, it was a revolutionary repository of do-it-yourself Judaism. Parts of it retain their utility to this day, while other parts are useful primarily as (often hilarious) historical records of the '70s. Updating the Jewish content is a project beyond the scope of this blog. This blog will focus on food.
On page 33, the Catalog says:
In the last few years it has become very important to some people to "retreat" every now and then for a Shabbat or a few days. Basically a retreat involves a small group of people who go away to the country (although sometimes they're held in the city at someone's house) to pray, eat, play, talk, and relax together. If planned in advance--and that means both program and food--it can be a wonderfully relaxing, learning, living kind of experience.
It then goes on to list simple food items, as well as sample menus, to feed large numbers of people without difficulty.
The following recipe deserves special mention, and has inspired the title of this blog:
SALAD (for 25 people)
2 heads lettuce
5 or 6 tomatoes
3 cucumbers
3 peppers
We, the spiritual and intellectual descendants of the Jewish Catalog authors, continue to convene large and laid-back Shabbat meals, whether formally (such as it is) through our independent minyanim or casually on the roof or in the park. We continue to make salad for 25 people. But we have changed in certain key ways. Just as we laugh and grimace when The Jewish Catalog (in some cases) unselfconsciously uses "he" as the default pronoun for teachers of Torah and "she" as the default pronoun in connection with domestic tasks, we laugh and grimace at the thought of salads with an iceberg lettuce base.
Therefore, we have created this blog, to post recipes and tips for today's vegetarian potluck meals.
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