Kids these days…

Photograph by Matt Hocking

You probably shouldn't listen to me. Admittedly, I was the kid who got excited when his mom packed a green pepper and cream cheese sandwich on whole wheat bread for lunch. Although, I also got excited for pizza day in the cafeteria which, by any definition I have now, is hardly pizza, much less actual food.

That said, when asked to present a dish a child could get excited about bringing to school for lunch I went right to friends, friends with kids, kids with picky palates. They liked the idea of this apple quinoa tabbouleh but thought all of the parsley and walnuts might be a bit sharp and bitter for a child’s palate., problems that were easily solved.

I chopped up sweet baby spinach to replace the parsley and buttery pecans replaced the walnuts. A little extra honey and olive oil in the vinaigrette balances the tart lemon lemon juice.

Hey, I know kids’ palates are tough from changing tastebuds to expressing budding independence, so I won’t be offended if they’d prefer pizza to tabbouleh, but I’ll be delighted when they ask for the tabbouleh next time.

Apple quinoa tabbouleh

Makes about 2 cups

A crunchy, sweet, fall farmers-market-fresh take on the classic Lebanese dish. Quinoa replaces cracked bulgur wheat and apples add sweetness while toasted walnuts add a rich crunch. Make a double batch to break out for lunch or a quick snack.

Adapt the flavors for kids: replace the parsley with chopped baby spinach, use pecans instead of walnuts and add an extra 1 tbs honey and 1/4 cup olive oil to the vinaigrette.

For tabbouleh:

1 sweet/tart apple, finely diced

1/4 cup minced parsley

1/3 cup finely diced red onion

1 cup cooked quinoa

1 tbs chopped mint

1 lemon, zested

1/2 cup toasted walnuts, chopped

1 tsp toasted, ground cumin

For vinaigrette:

1 shallot, minced

1 lemon, juiced

1 tsp honey

1 tsp toasted, ground cumin

1/4 cup olive oil - the good stuff!

Directions:

• Make vinaigrette: whisk together shallot, lemon juice, honey and cumin. Let the mixture rest for 20 min while flavors develop. Drizzle in olive oil, while whisking, to form a creamy emulsion.

• Toss together all ingredients for the tabbouleh.

• Dress tabbouleh to taste.