Convivi
The barbecue recalls the beach, holidays and light-heartedness, the gardens and the scent of wood, the company of friends and family, the desire for nourishment to turn into a banquet.
I think it can be said that it is one of the symbols of summer.
Here I propose it in a vegetable version, accompanied by a spelled cous cous, vegetables and pumpkin seeds and a cold datterini tomato soup with aromatic herbs.
Method
Put the couscous in a glass or ceramic bowl. Season with a pinch of salt and 4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil. Bring 650 g of water to a boil and add the couscous. Cover the bowl with a lid and let it rest.
Wash the datterini tomatoes and put them in a saucepan together with 1 coarsely chopped onion, 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and the basil leaves. Brown for 10 minutes, add 2 cups of water and cook for 20 '. Then remove about twenty cherry tomatoes from the pan and blend the others with an immersion blender. Cook for a few more minutes if the soup is too liquid.
Put a grill on the stove and heat it.
Cut the aubergines into thin slices (about 3 mm). Keep the irregular slices aside. Cut the courgettes into 3 cm cylinder trunks, with one of the two inclined bases (as seen in the photo). Keep the uneven pieces aside.
Bring a saucepan with salted water to a boil. Boil the zucchini cylinders for 2 minutes, then pat them with food paper. Grill the aubergines on both sides and the courgette bases. Then put them on a plate and season with extra virgin olive oil, half oregano and a pinch of salt (only on the aubergines).
Dice the courgettes and aubergines that you have kept aside. In a wok, heat a little extra virgin olive oil, brown the garlic and add the vegetables. Cook over high heat for 7-8 ', add salt, season with the other half of the oregano and add the couscous. Mix well and turn off the heat.
With the help of a pasta bowl, compose the dish: first make the external contour with the grilled aubergines, then fill it with the cous cous and finally lay the zucchini. Remove the pasta bowl and pour a little datterini soup all around the pie, with some datterino tomatoes, the pumpkins seeds and oregano to taste.
Serve the dish at room temperature.