Bulgur Salad with Parsley Pesto and Grilled Chicken

This week is busy as we prepare to leave for our vacation. My week was filled with packing, shopping, and planning and more packing.  My kids are attending summer camp for a week so I've written names on each and every belonging. I'm now making healthy lunches and snacks for the road. I'm thrilled to get out of the desert for a while, feel the damp air on my skin, watch a thunderstrom roll in, catch up with old friends, and rest!

Our first destination is a place that holds very special meaning for our family. It's a camp in the southwest corner of Missouri called Kanakuk. I spent 8 summers there as a kid and it was always the highlight of my year. The days were filled with sports, crafts, hanging around down at the lake, and of course, friendships that have lasted years. My husband also went to Kanakuk as a kid, but we never crossed paths. Probably better, because he was such a cute kid - I would have been heart sick during the fall and winter months wishing I could see him.

When my husband graduated from college and I finished my freshman year, we both chose to work at camp for the summer. Just after camp started I spotted a very tan, handsome guy working at the tree-tops course. While we strapped the kids in and sent them up into the trees, Pete and I enjoyed a conversation that was the beginning of the rest of our lives.

It was a quick romance. After a few mornings sailing on the lake and a beautiful evening watching fireflies and sharing our stories, we knew we were going to get married. Fast forward 14 years later and we have two little girls who are packing their things, practicing their cheers, and completely thrillled to spend a week at the place where their parents first met.

The other day my daughter was eating watermelon when she looked at me and proclaimed, "Watermelon is like all the best parts of summer combined into one bite."  She exactly captured my feelings when I tasted this salad for the first time last week.  It's summertime on a plate . . .

Bulgur Salad with Parsley Pesto and Grilled Chicken
Adapted from Bon Appetit
Serves 4

3 cups water
1 1/2 cups bulgur
1 1/2 cups flat parsley
1/2 cup slivered almonds
1/3 cup shallots, chopped
2 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 boneless-skinless chicken breasts
4 apricots, halved and pitted
1 tablespoon coconut oil

Pour 3 cups water into a large sauce pan and bring to a boil.  Add bulgur, reduce heat to low, and cover.  Cook until bulgur until tender.  Drain and rinse under water until cool.  Pour bulgur into a large bowl.

Place parsley, almonds, shallots, 1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in the bowl of a food processor.  Pulse 5-6 times until parsley is finely chopped.  With machine running slowly add olive oil and process until pesto is a chunky puree. 

Stir 3/4 cup of pesto and remaining lemon juice into bulgur.  Season to taste with salt and pepper. 

Preheat grill on meduim heat.  Season chicken breasts with salt and pepper.  Brush apricot halves with coconut oil.  Grill chicken and apricots until chicken is cooked through and apricots are slightly charred. 

To serve: Divide bulgur salad among 4 plates.  Place 1 piece of grilled chicken on each plate and top with a dollop of pesto.  Place 2 apricot halves on each plate.  Serve immediately.