I like everything bagels with lowfat vegetable cream cheese.  It's definitely the only way to enjoy them!

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This salad is great for a wonderful Summer meal or as a fresh side dish for a barbeque.

Ingredients:

Salad:

One box of Near East or any brand parmesan couscous
3 peppers (1 red, 1 green, 1 yellow) diced
2 medium tomatoes roughly chopped
1/2 of a large red onion minced
1 cup of pistachios
1/2 cup of feta cheese crumbled

Dressing:

2 lemons squeezed
1 1/4 cups of extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp. of freshly ground black pepper
1/2 tsp of garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon of ground cumin
Salt to taste

Method:

Follow the instructions on the box to prepare the parmesan couscous.  Then let the couscous cool to room temperature.  Chop your tomatoes roughly and dice your onion.  Coarsely chop your three peppers, and add to the salad bowl with the tomatoes and onion.  Add your pistachios and toss together.  Start your dressing by squeezing the juice of two lemons into a small bowl.  (Be sure to remove the seeds)  Then add your olive oil to the bowl along with your cumin, garlic powder, salt and pepper.  Whisk your dressing until it's thoroughly combined and set aside.  Begin to toss your couscous, vegetables, and nuts together.  Add your dressing and feta cheese, then toss the salad again.  Put the salad into the refrigerator to cool for two hours.  Serve with pita and hummus.  If you want a greek twist to this dish, you can add kalamata or sliced olives to the salad.

This recipe serves 6 to 8 people easily.

It's screeching toward the end of February and it's one month closer to the end of Winter.  I hate this season for many reasons, but mostly because I hate cold weather with a passion.  I could live in Summer temps all year round and never see one snowflake.  My pipe-dream is to live on a beach where the temps don't fall below eighty degrees.  The only thing that stops me from really pursuing that is my love for the Jersey Shore.  I'm proud to live near the best strip of coastline on the eastern seaboard, and I would miss it terribly if I left.  What's the point of moving somewhere else if you'll be miserable?  Right?  You can say what you want about New Jersey.  Most people make fun of the turnpike, the traffic, and the power plants.  I think that people are focusing on the one unpleasant part of our state.  People forget about the beautiful farmland, the gorgeous oceanfront, the awesome forests and parkland, and the rich history that our state has to offer.  I've grown up here, and I'm not embarrassed to call this state home.  I'm sure that many people feel that way about their hometown/state.  If the temperatures didn't fall below freezing every winter, it would be absolutely perfect.  I can handle it for three months I guess.  *sigh*

Here are some cool pics that make me think of Summertime



Island Beach



Cape May



Allaire State Park

See.. New Jersey's not just a screaming piece of asphalt with cars and factories.