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With my itinerant sister in Libya I thought I’d seek out something vaguely Libyan for the blog. I’d heard tell of unfathomably sweet tea, stodgy pudding things and meaty dinners, none of which appealed, so a short trip round the internet later I found this salad. It may be wholly unrepresentative of the diet of the Benghazian archaeologist but it is just the first foray into the cuisine of the land of the Great Man-Made River.

Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 45 minutes
Skill level: Easy
Serves: 4

Ingredients

Salad

• puy lentils - 200g
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 stalk of celery
• 1 sprig of thyme
• olive oil - 2tbsp
• 1 large onion - finely chopped
• cumin - 2tsp
• spinach - 400g
• parsley - 4tbsp - chopped

Dressing

• olive oil - 5tbsp
• Dijon mustard - 1tsp
• red wine vinegar - 5tsp
• 4 garlic cloves - finely chopped
• lemon rind - 1tsp - finely grated

Rinse the lentils and add to a large saucepan of water. Tie together the celery, bay leaf and thyme and add to the pot. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook the lentils for 40 minutes or until tender.

Make the dressing by combining all the ingredients plus salt and black pepper to taste.

Drain the lentils and place in a bowl. Pour in most of the dressing and mix thoroughly.

Meanwhile back to the rest of the ingredients. Heat the oil in a large pan and cook the onions for 5 minutes, then add the cumin and cook for a further minute. Add the spinach and season. Cook for a couple of minutes, until wilted.

Stir the spinach into the lentils and leave to cool. Adjust seasoning and add more dressing if deemed necessary. Scatter with chopped parsley and serve with lightly toasted pitta.

A present from Libya - a subtle set of stamps called ‘American Aggression’

Verdict: The star was the lemon rind in the dressing which really adds a lovely flavour to the dish. A very refreshing plate.

Drink: Post-pub ill-advised bottle of red.

Entertainment: QI repeats on BBC2, followed by quickly flicking over to Jonathan Ross purely for the purpose of shouting at the tv.