Couscous & Tomato Caprese Salad
Keeping it simple, keeping it fresh, keeping is quick, easy, healthy, light and delicious... That was what this little idea was all about!
The regular tomato and mozzarella would have been fine this evening... Had I thought to buy some bread to go with it! But alas, I am getting on in years and forgetfulness, ironically, is one of the things that constantly reminds me of the fact!
It was suddenly much hotter than had been forecast today- it caught me unawares and I'm telling you... By the time I got home from the city, the last thing that I wanted to do was to cook! I know... it's a rare occurrence... But it even happens to me!
The only thing I needed to do here was to boil some water and my electric kettle took care of that in less than 2 minutes, which meant that I didn't even have to turn on the stove... Perfect!
This was enough salad to have made 3 side-servings, but with this kind of dish, obviously you don't need to have a strict recipe with weights and quantities and what-not... You simply need the method and the rest takes care of itself... However...
For this evenings salad I used 5 tomatoes, 1 ball of mozzarella, about 1 teacupful of couscous, a good, generous handful of fresh basil and salt, pepper, vinegar and olive oil of course to season. Very, very, simple.
The thing is that these are well known and well loved flavors... So there is me need to mess around at all... Let it be what it is and simply enjoy the familiarity of it... And relax!
This was the only bit of tomfoolery that was involved with my salad... I cut away the tops of the tomatoes in a star shape before emptying them out, but a clean, straight cut will obviously be just fine!
I prepared the couscous by simply chopping plenty of basil and adding it along with salt and pepper, then covering it in boiling water.
I stirred it through and let it sit for a minute, after which time the water was absorbed, then repeated with another splash of water to cover it again. But after all of that torture, I let it sit and rest and get itself together for the next 15 minutes or so.
Once the couscous has cooled completely, fluff it up with a fork and then add the remaining tomatoes, seeded and diced. Season with salt, pepper, vinegar (I used malt, but red wine or balsamic are also fine) and of course olive oil.
Yes, I know, there is no vinegar involved in a classic Caprese salad... But this is the couscous we are seasoning here, capisce?
Fill a little couscous into the hollowed-out tomatoes before adding your mozzarella and basil, then season with salt, pepper and olive oil before serving... Nothing could be easier! Or more refreshing and delicious!
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