20 things to do with tomatoes: #10

This is one of my very favorite things to eat - serious comfort food, but it is actually quite healthy, too.  It is really good paired with the Turkish Green Beans from yesterday for a bit more green in the meal, but it also makes a great dinner all on its own at the end of a long day.  It is nicely seasonal, too, as the tomatoes and zucchini tend to be plentiful at the same time.

This recipe comes from a Food Network Kitchens cookbook called Making it Easy which I highly recommend.  It has great recipes, which really are quite fast and easy, but taste like they took far more effort.  Clear instructions, nice photos, simple ingredients.  Good stuff.

We've made this recipe so many times that we think we have it memorized, though we actually don't, which means that we are often short one or two ingredients for the tomato salad.  No matter, it is pretty flexible.

Beef & Bulgur Pilaf with Tomatoes and Mint
from Food Network Kitchens Making it Easy
serves 4

4 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 c pine nuts
8 ounces lean ground beef
1/4 tsp ground allspice
1 1/2 c medium grain bulgur
3 1/2 c chicken broth
1 medium zucchini, diced
1 1/2 tsp salt
freshly ground black pepper
2 c cherry or grape tomatoes (sweet sungolds are ideal)
2 scallions (green and white parts)
1/4 chopped fresh dill (fennel tops also works well)
1/4 c fresh mint, coarsely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
finely grated zest and freshly squeezed juice of 1/2 a lemon

Note: slice and prep the salad ingredients while the bulgur is cooking to save a little time

Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil and the pine nuts in a Dutch oven or heavy soup pot over medium-high heat and stir occasionally until the nuts are toasted (2 min).  Add the ground beef, breaking it up with a spoon.  Sprinkle with the allspice and cook, stirring, until the meat is no longer pink (3 min).  Stir in the bulgur and cook until lightly toasted (3 min).  Add the chicken broth, bring the mixture to a boil, and then adjust the heat to maintain a gentle simmer.  Scatter the zucchini over the surface of the pilaf (don't stir it in - it will steam on top) and sprinkle with 1 tsp of the salt and some ground pepper.  Cook, uncovered, until the bulgur is tender but not mushy (10-12 min).

Meanwhile, half the tomatoes and thinly slice the scallions.  Toss them with the dill, mint, garlic, lemon zest and juice, the remaining 2 tbsp olive oil, the remaining 1/2 tsp salt, and pepper to taste.

To serve,  mound the pilaf and spoon the tomato salad evenly over the top.  Serve warm.

Comments

[kat]

I think you need to adopt me! I would so love to be at your house at the dinner hour! Oh wait, I have. It WAS wonderful and things tasted as good as the pictures look!

[Penni]

Wow, looks fabulous. Love your site, it's so beautiful, and the recipes are great. Can't remember how I got here now (you know how that happens), perhaps via whip up? Ah yes, there you are.