Pearl Couscous Salad

Pearl couscous, to my mind, tastes more like pasta than couscous - which is probably why people who don't care for couscous quite like it - ie Geoff.

Here's a quick salad that could easily double as a lunch to take to the office or a working girl's dinner!

• Saute a chopped brown onion until golden. Add a 250g packet of pearl couscous, two cups of boiling water, a good pinch of sea salt and simmer for 8-10 minutes. Let it sit for a bit before transferring to a dish to cool
• Once cool, add a couple of diced tomatoes, a diced Lebanese cucumber and sweet corn. I used cooked, cold fresh corn and just sliced the kernels off the cob. It could have done with some diced red capsicum but there was none in the fridge...
• Micro-plane the zest off a lemon, then squeeze in the juice
• Drizzle on a good amount of olive oil - I used lemon scented because I reckon it can't ever be too lemony
• Add lots of chopped mint and parsley and taste - it might need more salt as the couscous really does needs a fair bit. And that's it - too easy!

Roast veggie, rocket and feta salad

Another salad creation - it was great with cold roast turkey in the park on Sunday with the cousins.

Cube and roast with a few splashes of olive oil:

• pumpkin - throw the seeds in too, Kiersten my American friend taught me that - and I sprinkled a generous amount of cumin over it too
• beetroot
• Spanish/red onion
• sweet potato

You could also roast garlic, zucchini, parsnip, carrot - just check what's in the fridge.

Try and keep the beetroot in it's own baking dish - it does stain everything else purple.

Once roasted, allow to cool, then mix through:

• rocket
• goat's cheese feta - crumbled
• a heap of chopped tarragon (this is the magic ingredient)
• loads of lemon juice and grated lemon rind
• salt and black pepper
• more cumin if you like it

Sprinkle generously with toasted pine nuts. (You don't need to add oil as there should be enough from the roasting)

This is another one that could be a meal in itself with a blob of sharp, natural yoghurt and a chuck of crusty olive baguette. And perhaps a glass of something white and crisp...