Black Rice Tabbouleh with Vegan Feta & Toasted Walnuts

Tabbouleh is a middle eastern salad consisting of lots of fresh herbs, (parsley and mint) bulgur, tomato, cucumber and is dressed with olive oil and lemon. You will often see tabbouleh having a higher ratio of bulgur to herbs, but traditionally the herbs are the star. This is just my little spin on it, more inspired by tabbouleh than being tabbouleh perhaps. The black rice is striking, and makes for a visually appealing side dish if you want to impress. 

Tomatoes
I decided to slice the tomatoes and plate them around the rice for the visual appeal. Mix them in if you want to.

Vegan Feta
I garnish this with Vegan Feta (I used VioLife brand, it works really well in this recipe) and toasted walnuts. This particular brand of vegan feta is really rich and creamy. I don't think every vegan feta would do what I want it to do in this dish. Alternatively, I would just drizzle more olive oil over top.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup black rice
• 2 cups water
• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
• Juice from 1 lemon (or more to taste, 1 large lemon was enough for me)
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/2 cup packed chopped fresh parsley
• 1/2 cup packed chopped fresh mint
• 3/4 cucumber, small dice (about 2 cups)
• 1/2 cup finely chopped red onion
• 1 tsp flaked kosher salt ( less if using table salt, or if your rice was cooked in a lot of salty water)
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
• 2 pints cherry tomatoes, sliced into rounds
• Vegan Feta & Toasted Walnuts for sprinkling over top

Method:

1. Cook rice according to package directions. Cool completely
2. Stir remainder of ingredients into the rice, except for feta and walnuts.
3. Spoon black rice tabbouleh onto a serving dish. Arrange sliced tomatoes around the outer edge.
   
4. Garnish with vegan feta, toasted walnuts, and more herbs if desired.