Microbiology and bulgur.

Dear readers:

I have been wanting to blog about bulgur wheat... and instead I do nothing but study and google terms for microbiology. Yes the material is fascinating... enough said.

My saving grace is the internet for research, whiskey for oblivion, coffee to keep me going through the night, friends for support and the weekly after-class crying... and bulgur.

Yes, bulgur. Because it is truly ''the'' fastest, most efficient grain on the planet. It is so fast, that I don't even need to cook it. All I have to do is boil some water and throw it on the grain. Almost no work = almost no gas/electricity = $$$!!!

The ratio is 1 = 1. Easy. One cup of bulgur. Put it in a bowl, and throw (delicately) 1 cup of boiling water over it. Let it sit for an hour... and I have my grain ready to eat.

I use it in salads, much like quinoa- with salt, olive oil, sliced almonds, parsley, cucumber, olives, red onions, cranberries, feta cheese... or as part of a spinach and/or arugula salad, with grated carrots, sliced radishes, boiled egg, olives... the choices are endless. It makes for a great lunch on the go, which I can easily eat before a workout. Not too filling, and yet nourishing.

I also use it to make kibbies, by mixing it with a pound of ground beef and a bit of salt and oregano. I roll it onto elongated balls, and bake them on a cookie sheet at 400ºF for 1/2 hour.

Bulgur = the truly efficient grain, the one and only that will be cooked and eaten during a challenging microbiology semester. Try it. It is not as evil as wheat is purported to be. On the contrary, it may become one of your sweetest, most reliable friends. Microbiology-proof.