Israeli Couscous Salad

As you can most likely guess, I am always looking for new salad recipes that I can pack whatever veggies I have hanging out in my fridge into one massive bowl and feed the family.  

I get a bit bored of green salads so if you need to shake things up at your house or you need a go-to salad for your next pot luck, give this recipe a try.  It's QUICK, TASTY & HEALTHY.  These are 3 things I am looking for when it come to my weekday meals.  It truly has to satisfy everyone because this girl is only cooking 1 meal for the whole tribe!  So if no one ate the meal...I would NOT be putting it up on the blog for you too try.

Last night the toddler of the house comes up to me and says "Mommy, thanks for supper; it was delicious"--In my mom brain I thought "WTF is this real life" but my mom voice said "Thank you, that makes mommy so happy".  So with that being said, if the toddler likes it, it is a win for everybody.

This salad is so easy to change up with whatever you have on hand so feel free to add a can of black beans or chickpeas to the mix and anything else that needs using up in your pantry or fridge.

For this recipe I used the WildRoots Pearl Harvest Couscous blend that has quinoa, yellow split peas and some orzo in it and it served as a nice base that has a bit of texture.  I picked it up at Costco.  If you can't get this blend just use regular Israeli couscous and cook as directed on the package.

For the seasoning on the shrimp use Emeril's Essence.  I make up a big batch throughout the year and use it whenever I need a little hit of creole seasoning.

If you come up with any great, new ingredient combinations for this salad, please leave them in the comments, I would love to hear them.

ISRAELI COUSCOUS SALAD

For the Dressing
2 limes, juiced
1/4 cup good quality olive oil 1 garlic clove, minced
1 tbsp honey
1/8 tsp dijon mustard
salt & pepper to taste

For the Salad
1 1/2 cups Israeli Couscous, uncooked
1/2 english cucumber, seeded and chopped
1/2 cup red and yellow grape tomatoes, quartered 1/2 cup purple cabbage, thinly sliced
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
1/4 cup feta, cubed

1 avocado, sliced
20 shrimp, uncooked

Directions
1.Mix all of the dressing ingredients together into a large mason jar and pulse with a hand blender.

2.Cook the couscous as directed on the package. Set aside and let cool in the fridge.

3.For the shrimp, season with salt and pepper and desired spice (I use Emeril’s Essence which has a nice creole flavour and great heat). In a medium frying pan over medium heat add butter and sauté the shrimp just until pink. Remove from heat and set aside.

4.In a large bowl, toss all of the prepped salad ingredients together EXCEPT the avocado and the shrimp. Add the cooled couscous and toss to combine.

5.Dress the salad to your desired liking (you may not need all the dressing) and make sure to taste it and adjust the salt and pepper if needed.

6.Serve and garnished each bowl with avocado and cooked shrimp.   Keeps well for a couple of days in the fridge.

​Serves 4

RECIPE PDF