Mediterranean Grain Salad

The second installation for Operation: Expand Horizons is a simple dish from the folks at Martha Stewart's magazine Everyday Food called Mediterranean Grain Salad.  The original version is slated as a vegetarian main serving one, but I decided to serve it as a side dish in my pregnancy-related craze to pack more veggies onto my plate at every meal.

As are all of the creations of the folks at Everyday Food, this dish wasn't difficult or ground-breaking.  It's a basic riff on classic tabouli salad, sans cucumber- soaked bulgur wheat, tomatoes, fresh parsley, and a simple vinaigrette of minced shallot, red wine vinegar, and olive oil, with the nontraditional inclusion of goat cheese. 

Being a fan of tabouli, I knew I'd like this one.  My husband, as expected (not a tabouli fan), passed, but 4 year old Eva enjoyed it.

I made one small adjustment in my preparation- leaving out the goat cheese.  First, I knew I'd be serving this as a side instead of a main, and didn't want to add more fat to my plate.  Second, goat cheese is freakin' expensive, and part of my adventures in the kitchen is to make good food on a reasonable budget.

All in all, a modicum of success was achieved.  I will make this simple salad again when I have some lovely garden-grown tomatoes this summer.

Note the sunny yellow tomatoes- sweet and lovely in salads.

I ate the salad as a side with grilled pork chop, steamed green beans, and mashed potatoes.