• 1¾ cups water
• 1 cup medium coarse bulgur
• ¾ tsp fine sea salt
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter
• ¼ cup skin-on almonds
• ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
• pinch of cayenne pepper

1. Pour the water into a small saucepan and bring to a boil
2. Stir in the bulgur and salt, and return to a boil
3. Decrease the heat to low to maintain a simmer. Cover, and cook until the water is absorbed, 12-15 minutes
4. Remove from the heat, cover, and set aside to steam for 5 minutes. Taste and adjust for salt
5. While the bulgur steams, melt the butter over medium heat in a large skillet or saucepan, preferably stainless steel. Cook, watching attentively, until the aroma of the butter becomes deep nutty-sweet, the color turns golden brown, and the bottom of the pan fills with brown specks, 3-5 minutes
6. Add the almonds, cinnamon, and cayenne and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute
7. Add the bulgur to the skillet (it might splatter!), stir to combine and serve right away

Note: To lighten it up, you can cut the butter to 1 tbsp

“Reprinted with permission from Ancient Grains for Modern Meals by Maria Speck, copyright © 2011. Published by Ten Speed Press, a division of Random House, Inc.”