Summertime Couscous Salad

Summertime is the time for couscous. I had my "one tomato" and some oregano from my garden all ready to go, and Simon applauded the decision to use garlic (as if I wouldn't). Anyway, I'm grateful he doesn't appear to be a vampire cat in addition to his other rascally PAB behaviors.

It would be worth it to invent Smell-o-vision for this, kids!

Ingredients:

• a couple garlic cloves, chopped
• one package Israeli couscous
• 1/4 cup olive oil, plus a drizzle to saute garlic
• the juice of two lemons
• zest of one lemon
• 3 cups chicken stock
• salt and pepper, to taste
• the season's first tomato
• oregano
• toasted almonds

In a large sauce pan, heated to medium, saute the garlic in a little olive oil until you can begin to smell it off the pan. Add the package of couscous and the juice of one lemon. Toast the couscous until it's coated with the olive oil and deepening in color (a few minutes). Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil, then simmer and cook until it's tender but not soggy (10 minutes or less). Drain & transfer to a bowl. Add the olive oil, juice of the second lemon, the lemon zest, and the salt and pepper. Let stand to room temperature-ish.

Chop the tomato and oregano and rough chop the almonds (who the heck slivers an almond?) and toss with the couscous.

I eat it right out of the bowl, and if there's any left, I just put it in the fridge (fork and all) so it's ready for me the next day (you do the fork-thing too, you know you do).