israeli couscous salad

The other afternoon I made this really good pear and chocolate tart. 

this isn't it.

The thing that can happen when you make really good pear and chocolate tarts in the afternoon is that you can ruin your dinner. 

It can be 8:30 and you're still not hungry but maybe your husband is, and maybe you have a fridge-full of vegetables you want to use even though you're not hungry.

Your husband you might start chopping vegetables anyway and you might start stirring around cute little balls of couscous and you might take inspiration from one of your favorite salads and make a really tasty dressing too.

You might throw it all together and decide it looks good enough to eat. Even though you're not really hungry. You might eat a whole bowl of the stuff and some of your husband's second bowl of it as well.

If you do all this, your tummy will be happy. It will thank you. Really, it will feel so good.

And then since you feel so good about what you just ate, you might decide that it's okay to have another piece of that tart.

And then your tummy might be mad at you again.

Israeli Couscous Salad

Serves 2

2/3 cup of Israeli couscous

1/3 cup red onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1 medium tomato, chopped

2 persian cucumbers, chopped (or about 1/2 cup regular chopped cucumber)

1 T. chopped dill

1 T. chopped mint

1/4 cup crumbled feta

Olive oil

Salt and pepper

Lemon

Dressing:

2 T. extra-virgin olive oil (I use lemon-infused)

2 T. red wine vinegar

1 T. sugar

1 tsp. lemon pepper (or regular fresh ground)

1/2 tsp kosher salt

Combine all dressing ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.

Cook the couscous according to the package instructions. While it is cooking, heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Add a swirl of olive oil and the chopped onion and garlic. Saute for about 2 minutes until onions are tender and slightly translucent. Remove from heat.

When couscous is done cooking, add it to the skillet with the onion and garlic and a sprinkle of salt and pepper (I used lemon pepper) and stir to combine.

Add chopped vegetables and herbs to a medium bowl. Add couscous mixture and dressing and toss to combine. Add in crumbled feta and give it another toss to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste, and add a squeeze of fresh lemon juice if desired. Serve at room temperature or chilled.