Thursday, July 17, 2014

Israeli Couscous & Tomato Salad


Israeli Couscous & Tomato Salad
(8 servings)

Ingredients:

6 cups (6 oz.) Arugula
2 cups (12 oz.) Israeli Couscous
½ cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil (plus some for drizzling)
¼ cup Pine Nuts
4 cloves Fresh Garlic, chopped
¼ cup Grated Parmesan Cheese
to taste Salt & Black Pepper
1½ pints Red Cherry Tomatoes, halved
4 large Yellow or Orange Tomatoes, chopped into 1 inch pieces

Directions:

Bring a large pan of salted water to a boil.  Add the arugula and blanch for 10 seconds.  Remove with a slotted spoon to a colander.  Rinse under cold water and let drain.  Now add the couscous to the boiling water and cook to al dente (about 1o minutes-see box instructions).  Drain couscous and drizzle with a little oil.  Mix gently and then spread the couscous out on a sheet pan to cool to room temperature.  While couscous is cooling, toast pine nuts in a small skillet over medium heat for about 2 minutes.  Let cool.  Squeeze excess water from arugula and chop.  Place in a food processor and then add nuts, garlic, cheese and ½ cup of oil.  Process until nuts are finely chopped.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Transfer couscous to a large mixing bowl and stir in the pesto you just made.  Now gently fold in the tomatoes and serve.  Salad can be refrigerated but be sure to toss gently again just before service.

Note:               Pine nuts are expensive.  So you could
                        sub walnuts if desired.

Note:               You can mix up your tomatoes in this recipe too.  Go with ones you like and/or what is available in the market.

Ideas for Future Efforts
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