I’m always a bit wary when friends

I’m always a bit wary when friends or colleagues use phrases such as “You must try this!” or “This is the best xyz!” when it comes to describing food or recipes – simply because I’ve been burned more than once in the past. Once bitten twice shy I guess. Not that I generally don’t trust their judgement, but over the years I came to realize, that the perception of food is highly subjective and a topic on which people rarely agree. Certainly it’s simply a matter of taste, not worth fighting over. Yet I don’t know how else I could better introduce my newest salad addiction to you other than with the words You must make this salad. This nutty goddess of a bulgur salad, mixed with cranberries and a hint of lemon has made my weekend. Well, Friday evening. Saturday afternoon. And even the grey and cloudy Sunday morning became a friendlier one while I was scraping the salad bowl to get every last bit…

My inspiration stemmed from a semi-business full-fun get-together we enjoyed at Sebastian‘s place a few weeks ago. His newly acquired round table was the center of great conversations between bloggers (like Kaltmamsell, Max & Coco) and non-bloggers and – of course – filled to capacity with tasty food. My personal highlight: The bulgur salad with dried cranberries. But since this salad was a store-bought addition to our table, there was no one to bug with my recipe inquiries. No arms to twist. What to do? The only feasible solution was to eat spoon after spoon and taking mental notes – making sacrifices in the name of research has never been sweeter ;) And while the final results did not exactly reflect the salad we had enjoyed at Chez Sebastian, I was extremely pleased with what I had whipped up in my saucepan.
Toast the pine nuts in a skillet over medium heat without additional fat and constantly stir until they gain a nice golden brown color, but be careful not to burn them. Once done, remove from skillet.
Finely slice the spring onions and coarsely chop the dried cranberries. Melt butter in a large saucepan and saute the spring onions over medium heat until quite soft.
Pour over the stock of your choice (vegetable or chicken) and bring to a boil, then add the bulgur and let boil for a couple of minutes (stiring every now and then) before adding the cranberries. Remove from heat and let stand until the bulgur is soft (10 to 15 minutes). Drain excessive stock if necessary.
Grate the zest of one lemon into the saucepan, add the toasted pine nuts and use a fork to loosen the bulgur until everything is evenly combined. Season to taste with additional sea salt (if necessary at all). Enjoy warm or cold.