Tabbouleh tonight

Bursting with inspiration for the new project today's nutrition has not been at all bad. Breakfast was a fried tofu slice and marmite sandwich, lunch; a bowl of green leaves and a peanut butter sandwich followed by some biscuits and dinner tonight is shown below.



Quinoa Tabbouleh.

Take a handful of quinoa (for one person, about 60g), wash it well, put it in a small saucepan and then pour boiling water on it to cover by about a centimetre, there's no need for huge quantities. Put the lid on the pan and let the grain gently simmer for 15 minutes until tender.

Meanwhile prepare the vegetables. Finely chop a small onion, a tomato (save the juices for the dressing), a 5 cm section of a fresh cucumber and if you have any (I didn't so I used a lovage leaf in the dressing) half a small stick of celery. That's one stalk by the way. You might also add a little diced red or green pepper. Chuck them all in a bowl as you go. Then make a dressing from lemon juice and olive oil in roughly equal proportion, the grain will soak up the lemon juice so use at least one lemon, add plenty of chopped mint, parsley and any other leafy herbs you fancy. I have no basil plants here yet and coriander leaf is, as far as I can tell, unobtainable in France. It'll have to be grown. Add as much crushed garlic to this as you can stand and salt in the quantities appropriate for your health.

When the quinoa is cooked, drain in a fine sieve and rinse with cold water. Mix into the vegetables and dressing. It should be green with herbs and fragrant with lemon and oil. Arrange on a plate dressed with lettuce, nasturtium leaves, other lovely things, take a picture and eat.