Shortly before I served dinner tonight, I posted my status update on Facebook, “I’m about to serve a dinner likely to be unpopular with the younger set, given Ian’s recent outburst: “Vegetables, vegetable, all we ever HAVE is vegetables!”"
It turns out I was wrong. Not only did my children willingly eat this dish, they kept exclaiming, “Wow! I LOVE these bean thingy’s!”
The bean thingys were roasted edamame beans, and they added quite a fabulous pizzazz to this Mediterranean salad (which, for those of you who live in parts of the country still hot and dry, is a NEARLY no-cook meal.) Added to that, a host of wonderful fresh vegetables from our CSA box made this meal Virtuous In the Extreme.
I’ll tell you what I put in, but you could certainly embroider your own version with whatever vegetables strike your fancy.
Roasted Edamame Tabbouleh
Start with:
- 2 c. cous cous or bulghur
- 2 c. boiling water
- a dash of salt
Pour the boiling water over the cous cous or bulghur in a bowl, then cover the bowl and let sit for 30 minutes or more, until all the liquid is absorbed. When you are ready to add vegetables, first fluff the grain with a fork.
While waiting for the grain, boil 1-2 pounds of edamame pods for 5 minutes. 
Run under cold water for a few minutes. Then squeeze the pods (which are inedible) to pop out the beans. 
Toss the beans with olive oil and salt, spread on a cookie sheet, and roast in a 500ºF oven for 10-15 minutes, or until the beans are starting to char on one side. Remove from oven, and add to the fluffed grain.
Then sautée together in olive oil:
- 1 c. chopped onion
- 1 TBSP garlic
When the onion and garlic are translucent, remove from heat and add to the cous-couse/bulghur. (Optional: include sliced mushrooms in the sautée.)
Then add:
- 5-7 red radishes, chopped
- 1 c. grape tomatoes, cut in half (mine happened to be a mix of red and yellow)
- 1 c. chopped amaranth leaves (or spinach, or kale, or some other leafy veg.)
- 2 c. fresh raw green beans, trimmed and broken into 2-3″ pieces
- 3 medium carrots, raw, sliced
- 1 c. shredded Romano cheese (or for a variation: feta)
- (Optional: you could also add broccoli, cauliflower, red peppers, and various fresh herbs)
For the dressing:
- 1/3 c. olive oil
- 1/4 c. red wine vinegar
- 3 TBSP balsamic vinegar
- 1 tsp. minced garlic
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. pepper
Whisk ingredients together in a small bowl, then pour over the salad. Toss or mix thoroughly, and serve immediately with good bread.
Laura
