Garden Herb Wheat Berry Salad

This past week was the annual shindig to celebrate my daughter's birthday. Every year the guest list includes more adults than kids, many who are shlepping a couple of hours to get there- and pizza and ice cream just doesn't cut it. I try to make different things each year, though I always end up with Mac and Cheese, some type of quiche ( I try new ones each year, stay tuned for this years) and a bunch of salads. This years salads included Caeser, a yummy quinoa kale salad with figs (keep you posted on that one) and this wheat berry salad whose inspiration was taken from my salad drawer. Lots of fresh veggies, lots of fresh herbs and the addictive, chewy texture of wheat berries all bound together with a refreshing lemon vinaigrette- what could be bad? Add some crumbled feta or goat cheese on top and you've got yourself a meal! Enjoy!

2 cups wheat berries (called "chitah" in Israel)

2 cups lightly blanched broccoli

1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved

2 carrots, sliced

1 yellow (or any other color) pepper, diced

1 can chickpeas, rinsed

4 scallions, sliced

1/4 cup sliced fresh basil

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

salt and pepper to taste

Place the wheat berries in a pot and cover with triple the amount of water. Add salt as you would to pasta and boil the wheat berries until tender but still a little chewy-around 40 minutes. Drain. Place the wheat berries in a bowl and mix in 1/3 of the dressing while the wheat berries are still warm. Once the wheat berries have cooled add the rest of the vegetables and herbs. Mix and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Dressing:

1/3 cup fresh lemon juice

zest of one lemon

1/2 cup olive oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 Tbl Dijon mustard

salt and pepper to taste

Whisk all together to emulsify.