Couscous Salad

 

We were supposed to go to a Pot Luck lunch today (Tuesday) but we ended up not going because Todd had had a bad night's sleep.  I ended up with a big bowl of this delicious salad, but no worries. I won't mind having it for lunch for a few days. Its quite healthy, and low in fat, high in fibre and well, just really tasty!

 

I love salads made with Israeli couscous.  Also known as Ptitim , Israeli couscous is a type of toasted pasta shaped like rice grains or little balls developed in Israel in the 1950s when rice was scarce. Outside Israel, it is typically marketed as Israeli couscous, Jerusalem couscous, or pearl couscous.

 

When we lived down South, I used to pick up a butternut squash, couscous and rocket salad at one of the local shops that I really, really liked. It just really lends itself to these types of salads.

 

The recipe is one that I adapted from a newsletter I get from Simple Nourished Living. It is a weight watchers friendly recipe as well as being very high in fibre and diabetic friendly.  She used Orzo pasta. I did not have any orzo pasta, and used the Israeli couscous instead. It worked perfectly.

 

I also didn't have any feta cheese, so I used coarsely grated Parmigiano Reggiano, which worked very well, and it lower in fat than the feta.  It has a lovely salty, cheesy flavour also.

 

Marinated artichoke hearts.  Yum. I adore artichokes.  I rinsed mine under hot water so that I could get rid of as much oil from them as possible. Doing this in no way affects the flavour.  You don't need to do this, its just what I always do.

 

She used whole plum tomatoes, but I chose to use baby plum tomatoes.  I picked up some really lovely ones in M&S yesterday that were lovely and sweet.  I love the vegetables you get at M&S. I know you pay more, but they taste better.  Sometimes its worth it, especially when you are talking about tomatoes.  These were fabulous!

 

I got my spinach at M&S as well.  Look at that beautiful colour!

 

With some spring onions or a bit of sharpness, and a punchy lemon and tarragon vinaigrette, this is a fabulously tasty salad.  I confess, I kept dipping my fork into the bowl, for one more bite.  Naughty me!

 

*Couscous Salad*

Serves 6

Printable Recipe 

Simple and filled with lots of colour and flavours.  Delicious. 

100g Israeli couscous, uncooked (1/2 cup)

18 baby plum tomatoes, quartered

280g jar of marinated artichoke hearts, drained and rinsed, then chopped (about 1 cup)

30g fresh spinach, tough stems broken off and discarded, and coarsely chopped (about 1 cup)

2 spring onions, chopped

60g coarsely grated Parmesan cheese (1/3 cup)

1 TBS capers, drained 

For the dressing:

2 TBS olive oil

2 TBS lemon juice

1 tsp dried tarragon (1 TBS fresh minced)

2 tsp finely grated fresh lemon zest

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp papper

 

 Cook the couscous in plenty of salted boiling water, according to the package directions.Drain well, rinse with cold water, drain well again. Set aside.


Combine the tomatoes, artichoke hearts, spinach and spring onions in a large bowl. Add the capers and couscous.  Toss together well.  Whisk together the dressing ingredients. Pour over the couscous and vegetables.  Sprinkle on the cheese and toss together again, until everything is well coated and mixed together.  Serve at room temperature.


Store any leftovers in the refrigerator.

 

I am pretty sure that this recipe could very easily be cut in half. You are just going to love it. Any leftovers can be refrigerated, but bear in mind the lemon juice will cook the spinach leaves a bit. No worries, its still pretty tasty!  Bon Appetit!

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Asian Slaw

 

This recipe I am sharing today is one that was a popular one with the ladies when I worked at the Manor.  That is not much of a surprise  as it is filled with an abundance of fresh flavours and a variety of crunchy textures!  Its also very colourful, at least on the first day at any rate.  It does tend to become singularly coloured with the red cabbage if left overnight, although the flavours are still really nice.

 

There are two kind of cabbage . . . crisp white cabbage, (also known as green in some places) and bright purple/red cabbage. Grated orange carrots . . .  sharp thinly sliced spring onions, along with coriander leaf and chopped dry roasted peanuts complete the salad mix.

 

The dressing is a lovely mix of Asian flavours . . . rice wine vinegar, soy sauce, honey, toasted sesame, gingerroot and garlic, whisked together with Dijon mustard (for sharpness) and a mild flavoured oil.

 

The dry roasted peanuts add another different texture and a hint of saltiness that goes very well with everything else.

 

The coriander (cilantro) leaf also adds colour and a hint of asian flavour that is very much at home in the mix.

 

The original recipe came from a Junior League cookbook called "The Life of the Party."  My boss always loved the Junior League Cookbooks.  I confess, I always liked reading hers and did photocopy a few recipes from out of them.

I also love Community Cookbooks, filled with everyone's favourite recipes.  You can find a few gems in those as well.   The more I look through cookbooks, and recipes collected through the ages, the more I realise that there is really nothing new under the sun, only new ways of doing things . . .  and fresher ingredients. We are so very blessed in these modern times to have ingredients available to us that our mothers could only dream of. 

 

*Asian Slaw*

Makes 6-8 servings

Printable Recipe

Fresh Oriental flavours with lots of colour and texture. This is really good.

For the Salad:

600g thinly shredded green cabbage (4 cups)

600g thinly shredded red cabbage (4 cups)

1 medium carrot, peeled and shredded

4 spring onions, peeled and thinly sliced

40g chopped dry roasted peanuts (1/4 cup)

3 TBS chopped fresh coriander leaf (Cilantro)

 

For the dressing:
3 TBS rice wine vinegar
1 TBS Dijon mustard
180ml canola or peanut oil (3/4 cup)
2 TBS soy sauce (I like the dark)
1 TBS honey
2 tsp toasted sesame oil
2 tsp minced fresh gingerroot
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

To garnish:

additional chopped peanuts and coriander leaf

 

 Whisk together the vinegar and mustard for the dressing.. Slowly whisk in the canola/peanut oil. Whisk in the soy sauce, honey, and sesame oil.  Stir in the gingerroot and garlic.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  Set aside.

Place both cabbages, carrot and spring onions into a large bowl. Pour the dressing over top and toss to coat. Add the peanuts and coriander leaf and toss again.  Once again taste and adjust seasoning as necessary. Cover and chill until you are ready to serve.  Scatter additional chopped peanuts and coriander leaf on top just prior to serving.

 

Left overnight, this becomes a delicious pickle that is great on sandwiches or with cold meats.  In any case, I am well happy to be coming into Spring when our food will start becoming lighter and fresher, for a time anyways!  Bon Appetit!  

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