Spring Couscous Salad with Basil Vinaigrette

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By Carlee LaRue

Spring Couscous Salad with Basil Vinaigrette

Name: Spring Couscous Salad with Basil Vinaigrette
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 25 min
Cuisine: Mediterranean
Ingredients: ½ cup uncooked couscous (not pearl couscous); ½ cup water or chicken broth; 16 ounces (about 3 cups) frozen peas; ½ cup chopped parsley; ½ cup crumbled feta cheese optional; ½ cup chopped walnuts or pecans; 1 cup packed basil leaves; ½ cup olive oil; 1 shallot, cut in half; 2 teaspoons minced garlic; 1 tablespoon honey; 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar; 1 pinch red pepper flakes; salt and pepper

5 steps

Prep:10minCook:15min

A spring couscous salad that's light and refreshing! Loaded with feta cheese, fresh parsley, blanched peas, and chopped walnuts and drizzled with the most delicious homemade basil vinaigrette! Serve it as a side salad or the main course!

Updated at: Thu, 17 Aug 2023 12:20:39 GMT

Nutrition balance score

Great

Glycemic Index

Low

Glycemic Load

Low

Nutrition per serving

Calories275.9 kcal (14%)

Total Fat19.7 g (28%)

Carbs20.5 g (8%)

Sugars5.5 g (6%)

Protein5.8 g (12%)

Sodium162.4 mg (8%)

Fiber3.9 g (14%)

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Ingredients

8 servings

½ cupcouscous

uncooked, not pearl couscous

½ cupwater

or chicken broth

16 ouncesfrozen peas

½ cupparsley

chopped

½ cupcrumbled feta cheese

optional

½ cupchopped walnuts

or pecans

1 cupbasil leaves

packed

½ cupolive oil

1shallot

cut in half

2 teaspoonsminced garlic

1 tablespoonhoney

3 tablespoonswhite wine vinegar

1 pinchred pepper flakes

salt

pepper

Instructions

Step 1

In a medium saucepan, bring the cooking liquid to boil. Remove the saucepan from the heat, stir in the couscous, cover and let sit for 10 minutes. Fluff with fork.

Step 2

While the couscous is cooking, heat a large pot of water to boil. In a medium bowl, create an ice bath with lots of ice and water, set aside. Add the frozen peas to the boiling water and let blanch for 1-2 minutes or until the peas turn bright green and are warmed all the way through. Drain in a colander, and immediately drop the peas into the ice water bath so they stop cooking. Drain from ice water before adding to salad.

Step 3

In a serving bowl, combine the fluffed couscous, peas, parsley, feta, and walnuts.

Step 4

Combine the ingredients for the basil vinaigrette in a blender, using a big pinch of salt and pepper. Blend until the dressing is smooth. Taste and adjust the salt and pepper to taste. You can also add additional honey if you want your dressing to be sweet, the 1 tablespoon was enough for us.

Step 5

If you want to serve this salad warm, dress immediately with the desired amount of dressing and serve. If you want to serve this salad cold, I suggest refrigerating the dressing and the salad ingredients separately for at least 1-2 hours before serving. Toss half the dressing in with the salad ingredients and adjust with additional dressing, salt, and pepper to taste.

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