Warm Bulgur Salad with Vegetables

Don't have bulgur? Don't sweat it! This dish will work great with just about any grain or rice you can think of: brown rice, couscous, wild rice, quinoa, the sky's the limit!

Warm Bulgur Salad with Vegetables

1 ½ cups buglur (should be 3 cups once cooked)
2 yellow squash, diced
2 zucchini, diced
1 pint grape tomatoes
¼ cup good quality cold pressed extra virgin olive oil
2 Tbs fresh thyme
4 cloves garlic, diced
¼ cup feta cheese (basil & sundried tomato flavor)
½ bunch fresh parsley, chopped
2 scallions, thinly sliced
juice from 2 lemons
salt and black pepper

Cook buglur by seasoning 3 cups of water with salt and bringing it to a boil. Stir in uncooked bulgur, reduce heat to medium and cover. Let simmer for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to low and continue cooking for about another 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork and set aside.

Meanwhile, combine olive oil, tomatoes, thyme and garlic in a small sauce pot. Bring up to a simmer, stirring to ensure even cooking of the tomatoes. Season with salt and black pepper and cook until tomatoes are tender but are not breaking apart. Drain off excess oil and set tomatoes aside.

Heat a pan over medium-high heat with 1-2 Tbs of olive oil. Add squash and zucchini, in batches if need be, to sear then sauté until just tender. Season with salt and black pepper and set aside.

Compose the salad in a large bowl. Add the fluffed bulgur, zucchini and squash, tomtoes, parsley, scallions and lemon juice. Toss to combine ingredients and top with crumbled feta cheese. Serve warm or room temperature.