Bulgur buttons with garlic and spinach

Bulgur is grain made from paraboiled, dried and partially de-branned wheat. As it is a whole grain, it is definitely healthy to eat and if you add some garlic and spinach, it would be just wonderful!
This dish is a traditional Turkish dish and these bulgur buttons can be served with different sauces - plain tomato sauce, yogurt sauce or tomato, garlic and spinach sauce. When I first tried this dish, it was served with spinach and when finally I decided to make this dish myself, I made with a similar sauce. I must confess that I wasn't friendly to bulgur at first but it turned out that I hadn't known how to prepare it exactly! But by accident I watched some videos on youtube, I understood that you have to knead it for at least 10 minutes to be able to shape them in any ball or köfte. Anyway, it is one of my husband's favourite dishes, so it's going to be a lovely dinner tonight!

What we need:

for the dough:

200 ml of fine bulgur
4 tbsp flour
1 egg
1 tbsp pepper paste
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp red pepper flakes
a pinch of dried thyme
salt and pepper
300 ml of boiling water
1 lemon

for the sauce:

4 tomatoes
1 tbsp of tomato paste
1 onion
4 cloves of garlic
a pinch of red pepper flakes and thyme
a big handful of spinach
olive oil

What we have to do:

1. Pour over boiling water over bulgur. Mix it and leave it for 10 minutes. It will completely soak the water.
2. Add an egg, tomato and pepper paste, cumin, salt and pepper, red pepper flakes and thyme. Mix it well and knead it for about 5-6 minutes.
3. Add flour and knead again for 5 minutes. While kneading try to crash the bulgur so that it released starch and this will help to keep the shape while boiling.

4. Take a small ball of dough, roll it into a ball and make a thumbprint. ( It would be wise to take off all your rings! )

5. Put bulgur buttons in a boiling water with some salt and 1 lemon juice. When it starts to boil, do not stir. Boil for about 7-10 minutes depending on the size and remove from the pot.

6. Make the sauce by frying 1 finely chopped onion and garlic with some olive oil. Then add 4 peeled and grated tomatoes and tomato paste. Let it simmer for 5 minutes. Then add spinach and mix it well. Cook for 1-2 minutes. Then serve with the bulgur buttons. Garnish with parsley! Enjoy!

It's certainly a dish for a crowd as I made 2 big trays!