After being on an island for almost five days, lazing on a sandy beach and swimming in the wonderfully refreshing North Sea every afternoon – and even one evening after dark when there was no one else around and the waves were dotted with bioluminescent algae – coming home to a hot stuffy apartment was a bit of a downer. We were hot and hungry, so this salad was easy to throw together with minimal use of the stove or other heat sources. It’s a bit of mishmash, but this black garlic dressing (nearly the same one I used for my  black garlic tomato salad) makes it a very satisfying one. We happened to crave avocados that evening, but you can add other vegetables if you like and even substitute the couscous for bulgur or quinoa. I also added something the organic supermarket sells as “primordial cucumbers”, but which is basically a kind of heirloom cucumber: a firmer and knobblier cousin of the type you normally find on the shelves. It has a very thick skin,  but it also has a lot more flavour and a lot less water. Okay, my lunch break is over and the deadline beckons. Back to work now!

Ingredients (for 2):

2 avocados, chopped

2 handfuls of multi-coloured cherry tomatoes, halved

a handful of soy-roasted sunflower seeds (see here)

1 small red onion, very thinly sliced

Organic Greek sheep’s milk feta

1/2 heirloom  cucumber, thinly sliced

1 cup of couscous

1 cup of  boiled stock

3 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

2 cloves of black garlic

salt & pepper

• make the dressing by blending the olive oil, vinegar, black garlic and salt and pepper until smooth and then add the onion slices to marinate.
• soak the couscous in the stock until all the stock has been absorbed.
• throw everything together and eat it.

A closer look at that knobbly heirloom cucumber.