Red lentil salad with avocado, tomatoes and grilled parma ham

Do you know the feeling when you come back from a holiday and suddenly crave simple, wholeseome dishes? If you do and you've just spent a week or so sampling the local specialties of wherever you went, enjoying leisurely lunches and lengthy dinners with one amazing course following the next, all accompanied by bottles of locally produced wine which is completely average but in your blissful holiday-state of mind seemed to you like the best ever, this red lentil salad with avocado, tomatoes and grilled parma ham might just be the ticket. It'll provide the simple pleasures you might be looking for and yet makes for a gentle (culinary) landing back into everyday life.

Red lentil salad with avocado, tomatoes and grilled parma ham (serves 2)

• 120g red lentils
• 1 avocado, diced
• 4 tomatoes, deseeded and diced
• 4 slices parma ham
• 2 teaspoons mustard
• 1 teaspoon honey
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon chopped chives
• salt and freshly ground pepper
• salad leaves (optional)
  

Cook the lentils in salted water until soft. Rinse quickly under the cold tap and put in a bowl and let cool slightly. Add the diced avocado and tomatoes. Combine the mustard, honey, vinegar, olive oil, chives and salt and pepper to make the dressing and add to the lentils. Grill the parma ham until crisp and crumble over the salad. If you happen to have some salad leaves waiting to be used up (as I did), add them, too, toss and serve immediately.