Warm Tabbouleh with Chicory - Waitrose Winter Harvest 2015 Recipe

This is another recipe from the Waitrose Winter Harvest 2015 magazine that I'd been eyeing up for a while. The thing that put me off a bit was the chicory because I'm not a big fan. I was hoping this recipe might change my opinion. However, I love feta cheese and also grapefruit and tabbouleh reminds me of a surfing and camping trip along the South West coast of France back when I was a teenager. I was vegetarian at the time and the bulgar wheat was quick and easy to prepare in one pot on a gas camping stove.

I followed the recipe almost exactly as written. I halved everything as I made it for my OH and myself for lunch. I have rearranged some of the instructions for cooking because it worked better that way for me. Below is the recipe. Read on for my verdict and things I'd change next time I make this.

Warm Tabouleh with Chicory - Waitrose Winter Harvest 2015 Recipe
Serves 2

Ingredients:
150g bulgar wheat
175ml vegetable stock (I used Marigold)
3 tomatoes, finely diced
12g fresh flat-leaved parsley, chopped
juice of 1/2 lemon
100g feta cheese
25g pine kernels
2 chicory heads, halved lengthways

Method

• Place the bulgar in a saucepan with the stock. Bring to the boil, cover and simmer for 3 minutes. Turn off the heat. Put a lid on the pan and allow the bulgar wheat to finish cooking in its own steam for 5 minutes until the liquid is absorbed and the cracked wheat is tender.
• Meanwhile, griddle the chicory for about 2 minutes on each side. You can toast the pine kernels right at the last minute in the pan but be creaful, they "toast" very quickly, and by quickly I mean in less than 30 seconds! They just need a flash in the griddle.
• Remove the skin and pith from the grapefruit and cut away the segments
• Once the bulgar wheat is done, add the tomatoes, parsley, lemon juice, grapefruit and grapefruit juice. Mix together.
• Divide the chicory onto two warmed plates and top with the bulgar wheat. Crumble over the feta and sprinkle on the pine kernels.

Verdict
As mentioned above, I am not particularly keen on chicory but was hoping this dish might give me a new perspective on what comes across to me as quite a sophisticated salad veg, Perhaps griddling it would bring out a different flavour? Sadly it didn't. I don't hate it; I ate it all. Maybe my taste buds aren't sophisticated enough to appreciate its unique flavour. To me, chicory tastes like the bitter milk from the base of a lettuce and reminds me of dandelion leaves. BUT I did thoroughly enjoy the combination of the remaining ingredients - the grapefruit and feta cheese go together really well and I have always loved tabbouleh and it made me realise that it is so easy and quick to make that I'm really not sure why I don't make it more often?! Remove the chicory and you also have a reasonably priced lunchtime salad or accompaniment to fish or meat for a satisfying family dinner.
The instructions and ingredient ratios were pretty good. The bulgar wheat dried up a bit too much during cooking and there seemed to be a disproportionate amount of tomato and not quite enough grapefruit. The chicory needed griddling for longer than the recipe stated.
The portion size was a little bit on the large side.

Modifications
I'd omit the chicory (sorry!), reduce the amount of tomatoes and add some finely chopped cucumber as everybody in the family likes cucumber, especially the kids. I'd also put in more grapefruit as I really enjoyed the flavour with the feta. When cooking the cracked wheat I'd add a touch more stock.
I will need to test this on my big kids before I give it the thumbs up as a family meal.