Cherry Couscous & Arugula Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette

The tomatoes are ready. My tomatoes — the ones I planted in April and talked to and watered and worried over — are finally, magnificently ripe, and I picked the first six on Monday morning with the ceremonial gravity of a woman harvesting the fruits of four months of labor and conversation. They were perfect. Small, red, warm from the sun, tasting of actual tomato, which is a flavor that grocery store tomatoes have forgotten entirely. I ate one standing in the garden, juice running down my wrist, and thought: this is the best thing I have done all summer, and I taught a student to understand metaphor in June.

I made a caprese salad — tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, basil from the pot, olive oil, salt. This is not Ashkenazi food. Sylvia would not have recognized it. But I live on Long Island, which is also Italian, and the Italian mothers in Oceanside taught me thirty years ago that a tomato and mozzarella need nothing more than each other and a little oil, and they were right, and I have incorporated this lesson into my kitchen without feeling that I have betrayed the Ashkenazi mission. Cooking, like living, requires the occasional alliance with the neighbors.

David called to discuss Marvin's latest neurologist report. We do this on the phone — the medical conversations, the clinical updates — because having them in person, at the kitchen table, in front of Marvin, feels wrong, even though Marvin may or may not understand what we're discussing. David uses his doctor voice, which is calm and precise and drives me slightly crazy because I don't need his doctoring, I need his son-ing, but I understand that the doctor voice is how David manages his own fear, and I let him have it. The report was neither good nor bad. The disease is doing what the disease does. We adjust. We continue. I made more soup.

The caprese was Monday’s gift from the garden — elemental, barely a recipe at all. But the week kept going, the phone calls kept coming, and I needed something that required just a little more from me: a few more steps, a little more intention, the satisfying thud of a knife through cherries. This Cherry Couscous & Arugula Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette became my midweek answer — still summer-bright and honest, still the kind of food the Italian mothers in Oceanside would approve of, but with enough going on in the bowl to hold a distracted mind steady.

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 10 min | Total Time: 25 min | Servings: 4

Ingredients

1 cup dry couscous
1 cup boiling water or vegetable broth
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
1 1/2 cups fresh sweet cherries, pitted and halved
3 cups baby arugula, loosely packed
1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/4 cup toasted sliced almonds
2 tablespoons thinly sliced fresh basil
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
1 small shallot, finely minced
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Instructions

Cook the couscous. Place couscous in a large heatproof bowl and add 1/4 teaspoon salt. Pour boiling water or broth over top, stir once, then cover tightly with a plate or plastic wrap. Let sit for 5 minutes, then fluff thoroughly with a fork. Spread loosely and allow to cool to room temperature, about 10 minutes.
Make the balsamic vinaigrette. In a small bowl or jar, whisk together balsamic vinegar, honey, minced shallot, and Dijon mustard. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil while whisking continuously until the dressing is emulsified. Season with remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and black pepper to taste.
Pit and halve the cherries. Using a cherry pitter or a small paring knife, remove the pits from the cherries and cut each in half. Pat lightly with a paper towel to remove excess juice if needed.
Assemble the salad. Add the arugula to the cooled couscous and toss gently to combine. Add the cherries, feta, toasted almonds, and fresh basil. Drizzle about two-thirds of the vinaigrette over the salad and toss to coat evenly.
Taste and finish. Taste the salad and add more vinaigrette, salt, or pepper as needed. Serve immediately, or refrigerate for up to one hour (add arugula just before serving if making ahead to prevent wilting).

Nutrition (per serving)

Cherry Couscous & Arugula Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette — When the Garden Gives, You Receive