Yummy and Easy Summer Meal

This dish has become one of our favorites. I whipped it up when the weather was so hot a few weeks ago. It's easy and allows a bunch of substitutions, plus you can scale it up or down depending on how many people you have to feed.

Couscous and Garbanzos

1/4 cup dry couscous/person - use whatever kind you like best
enough hot water to soak your couscous (generally a 2:1 ratio water:couscous)

Set couscous to soak until tender. Times will vary depending on whether you heat the mix.

1/2 cup canned garbanzos/person
2 Tbl minced red onion/person (or to taste)
1/2 finely diced red bell pepper/person (or to taste)
1/2 cup coarsely chopped cherry tomatoes/person (or to taste)
1 oz finely crumbled feta/person (or to taste)

Mix all of the above together. I like to crumble the feta very fine so it coats the other ingredients, but you can leave it chunky if you like. Fold in soaked couscous and mix gently until thoroughly blended.

1-1/2 Tsp olive oil/person (or to taste - I like less oil)
1/2 tsp lemon juice/person (or to taste)

Blend in oil and lemon juice.

Spices: Add any of the following or adjeust for your own taste. Amounts below are for a 2-person meal:

1 tsp cumin (generous)
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cayenne
1/8 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp cardomom
handful of fresh mint leaves, finely chopped (Basil works, too)

Ad spices, blend in. Put dish into fridge for an hour or more to let flavors blend. Serve chilled or at room temperature. These proportions are for meals, cut in half if being served as a side dish.

Anglachel