A Great Vegetarian Meal
I don’t know why anyone eats meat when there are such great vegetarian meals to make and eat. Monday and Tuesday were tough, long days. After returning from the Foodbuzz Festival late Sunday night, I then had to turn around and do all my laundry and pack for a work trip with PB, leaving Wednesday morning. There was no time for grocery shopping, so I dug into the fridge, pantry, and freezer to put together Tuesday night’s dinner.
I do my best to eat well and eat light, but sometimes a dish is so good that I can’t help but eat two huge bowls of it. This was one of those times. There are no excuses not to eat a healthy diet when there are lower cost meals one can make that take little to no time. This dish, from start to finish, took about 20 minutes, not including the time the wheat had to soak.
Cracked Wheat with Broccoli, Garbanzo Beans & Kalamata Olives
Ingredients:
2 cups cracked wheat or bulgur
1 package frozen broccoli
1 16 oz can garbanzo beans, drained
10 pitted and chopped kalamata olives
1-2 cups tomato sauce
Directions:
1. Soak your cracked wheat (very similar to bulgur or bulghur wheat) in water for 1 hour. This is done easily by putting it in a bowl and pouring water over it until it is fully covered by water.
2. Drain the wheat. At this point you could cover the bowl and put it in the fridge until you need to use it.
3. Steam the broccoli until soft, about 5-7 minutes. Add that as well as the garbanzo beans, kalamata olives, and 1 cup of sauce and mix well together. If the mixture is still a little dry add more sauce until it reaches the consistency you want. For me, this time, that meant about 1.5 cups of sauce. The amount of sauce needed depends on how long you soak your wheat and how much water it absorbs.
4. Put the whole mixture in a pot over medium heat for 2-3 minutes, stirring every now and then. Alternately, heat up the whole bowl in the microwave until hot.
5. Enjoy!
I found this to be extremely satisfying and flavorful, but most importantly, it was made with all ingredients that are good for you. Suggestions are welcome, so try it out and let me know your thoughts!
19 Responses to “A Great Vegetarian Meal”
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I’d have never heard it called ‘cracked wheat.’ This does look good. I think if I roasted the broccoli I’d be good to go eating this veggie dish. 🙂
you serve it cold?
Correction!
1. Jessica- You are right, they are not exactly the same thing, but cracked wheat is not easy to come by. Bulgur is the acceptable replacement as they are similar in taste and texture.
2. Auntie Daniela- I fixed that. I heated it up in a pot, but I think it would be good cold too! Thanks for noticing auntie!
Left you a surprise on my blog
🙂
This is so simple and healthy.. love it. Def something I need to add to my list of things to make!!!
Great mix of ingredients!
This sounds amazing. I’m going to make it soon!! Thank you for the recipe 🙂
Im going to try this one!!! YUM!!!!
That looks so good! I am so bummed I wasn’t able to make to San Fran last weekend! I missed I great time, I know. Great job with your demonstration!
🙂 You looked like a pro!
OH yum. Beautiful picture!
By the way, all of your posts from last weekend were lovely. I’m so glad you enjoyed SF (my newly claimed city!)
Cant wait to try this next week! Looks delish
I love salads like this too! They seem so filling and great for left-overs!
This recipe looks delicious. I have some bulgur that has been taking up space in the pantry for way too long! I’ll definitely have to try this one out!
I make a dish similar to this using brown rice. I’m curious to see what it would taste like if I replaced the rice with bulgur. Thanks for the recipe!
I’ve been trying to use a lot more of my pantry items lately so this is great! Have a fun time in Miami!!
Love when a dish comes together in 20 minutes! Looks delicious!
If I made a vegetarian meal, I think my husband would faint! He likes meat for breakfast, lunch and dessert!
That looks like a great combination of texture and flavor – so good. I love meals that come together quickly 🙂
Are you a vegetarian??? Looks wonderful!