Mediterranean Parsley Salad from Migraine Relief Recipes | Vegan, gluten-free, paleo, grain-free, migraine-friendlyUnbelievably fresh-tasting minty Mediterranean parsley salad, made with fresh tomatoes and hemp seeds.

I can’t remember the first time I had Middle Eastern food. It was probably in Chicago, home to the world’s great cuisines. I do remember absolutely loving tabouli the first time I had it, and making it from Molly Katzen’s original Moosewood Cookbook. True tabouli uses cracked bulghur wheat, parsley, mint, lemon, olive oil, and tomatoes. Molly suggests chickpeas, grated carrot, diced green pepper, diced cucumber, crumbled feta, and olives as possible add-ins.

When I went gluten-free, I wondered how to renovate this recipe for my new eating plan, and came up with quinoa tabouli. Also excellent.

A while back I was going to lunch with a friend and didn’t have any lettuce, but I did have a big bunch of Italian flat-leaf parsley. So I made a version of this salad with mint from my garden and everyone raved about it. I had also tried a “paleo tabouli” at Whole Foods Market in Boulder than subbed hemp hearts for the grain.

If you end up buying parsley for a recipe and don’t use it all, try making this! You’ll be surprised at how zingy and fresh it tastes, and you can add tomatoes and cucumbers in really any ratio and it still works.

So here’s my new version, since we are eating more paleo these days. Migraine peeps, you’ll be substituting white vinegar for the lemon juice until you can test lemons for yourself.

Mediterranean Parsley Salad from Migraine Relief Recipes | Vegan, gluten-free, paleo, grain-free, migraine-friendly

Tabouli Salad / Mediterranean Parsley Salad {paleo}

Unbelievably fresh-tasting minty tabouli / tabbouleh parsley salad, made with fresh tomatoes and hemp seeds.
5 from 2 votes
Prep Time 10 minutes
Total Time 10 minutes
Course Dinner, Lunch
Cuisine Mediterranean
Servings 10 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 2 bunches Italian flat-leaf parsley (fresh) can substitute curly parsley (use stems)
  • 1 bunch mint leaves (fresh) remove stems
  • 2 onions (green) scallions, spring onions
  • 16 ounces cherry tomatoes
  • 1 cucumbers English, organic if possible, or 4 Persian cucumbers, diced
  • 5.64 ounces hemp seeds shelled (also called hemp hearts), 1 cup
  • 1 lemon juiced (substitute 2 teaspoons organic white vinegar for migraine diet)
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil (extra virgin)
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/2 teaspoon sea salt omit for migraine and low-sodium diets

Instructions
 

  • Use a food processor with the S-blade to chop the parsley and mint leaves, working in batches. Pulse on short blasts, about 5 pulses, until the leaves are chopped and most of the stems are not visible. Add to a large serving bowl.
  • Add the tomatoes to the food processor and pulse about 10 times until they are roughly chopped. Add to the bowl.
  • Thinly slice the onions and add. Dice the cucumbers and add.
  • Add remaining ingredients and toss together. Refrigerate until ready to serve so the flavors meld.

Notes

To make a heartier main-dish salad, add 1 can of drained and rinsed chickpeas (garbanzo beans).