Crunchy Green Bean, Tomato, Chicken and Pearl Couscous Salad

Just cooked crunchy green beans and ripe sweet cherry tomatoes perk up this lovely salad made with pearl couscous, augmented with chicken, and dressed with raspberry vinegar and whole grain mustard.

Once again, I’m sharing a recipe perfect for my self-imposed Salad Month. This Crunchy Green Bean, Tomato, Chicken and Pearl Couscous Salad is another of our favorites when it’s hot outside. It’s light yet, because of the pearl couscous and chicken, it’s filling enough to be a meal on its own. Or, if you want, omit the chicken from the salad and serve it as a side dish.

If you are not familiar with pearl couscous, also known as mograbia, it’s made from a moistened bulgur wheat paste which is rolled into small balls. The balls are coated with finely ground hard white wheat flour and dried. Those who still make pearl couscous in the traditional manner hand roll the balls and dry them in the sun. I bought mine in a bag at my local grocery store.

My younger daughter (and the Boxer boy) will eat green beans completely raw. I prefer mine blanched for salads but you do you. If you like them uncooked, skip the first step of this recipe. Either way, this is another instance where the ingredients are simple, but the finished dish is more than the sum of its parts. The bonus is that, if you make enough to last until the next day, this salad tastes just as good, possibly even better.

Crunchy Green Bean, Tomato, Chicken and Pearl Couscous Salad

Ingredients – serves 2 for a main meal
For the salad:
7 oz or 200g fine green beans, cut in bite-sized pieces
1 cup pearl couscous
1 small onion, sliced
Green onion tops, chopped
Sea salt
Black pepper
7 oz or 200g cherry tomatoes, cut in halves
Leftover roast or rotisserie chicken – two breasts or an equivalent amount deboned and cut in bite-sized pieces

For the dressing:
1/8 cup raspberry vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon whole grain mustard
Pinch sea salt
A few grinds of fresh black pepper

Method
Bring a pot of water to the boil and blanch the green beans for 2 1/2-3 minutes. Drain and refresh them in some ice water so they stop cooking. Drain well.

Cook the couscous as you would pasta in salted water, boiling till the little balls are al dente, that is, soft but still with a little firmness. (Follow your package instructions for the best results.) Drain and rinse and leave to cool for a few minutes.

Toss the warm pearl couscous in a large salad bowl with the sliced onion and chopped green onion tops. Season with a few grinds of black pepper.

Shake the dressing ingredients together in a clean jar until well combined and pour over the couscous. Stir well.

Add in the crunchy green beans, halved cherry tomatoes and the chicken. Toss well. Taste for salt and pepper and add more if necessary.

Enjoy!

Do you keep cool in summer by eating salads too? Here are a few you are sure to enjoy!

• Halloumi Freekeh Peach Salad 
• Spicy Cucumber Chickpea Salad 
• Chili Peach Vinaigrette 
• Cupboard Tomato Mozzarella Salad 
• Black-eyed Pea Salad 
• Red Camargue and Wild Rice Salad with Seared Tuna 

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Spicy Cucumber Chickpea Salad

Chickpeas are fabulous for absorbing seasonings when warm, which adds such flavor to dishes like this spicy cucumber chickpea salad.

It’s day 6 of my self-imposed Salad Month – a celebration of cold dishes for the heat of August, at least in the northern hemisphere. No one wants lean over a hot stove or oven when it’s sweltering outside so I'm bringing you fresh cool salad recipes all month long.

As for me, I’m on day 7 of a cross-country trip from the east coast to the west coast of the United States. My younger daughter and I started out in Massachusetts on July 30th and made our way to upstate New York (with a last minute side trip to Niagara Falls) and Ohio (with an afternoon at the State Fair),  through a small piece of Pennsylvania and on to Kansas, then Colorado (where we picked up my elder daughter) and finally, Utah. As you read this, we’ll be driving south from Moab towards the Grand Canyon. Still ahead: Las Vegas!

It’s been a heck of a trip so far. As I’ve mentioned before, my Instagram feed is always eclectic but you can check out some highlights of our trip so far there.

Spicy Cucumber Chickpea Salad

Often the simplest set of ingredients make the best recipes. That is certainly true of this salad. Unlike most of my summer salads, this does require turning the stove on but not for long, just enough to soften the garlic, onion and jalapeño for seasoning the chickpeas. It’s great with pan-fried fish or anything grilled. Best of all, it’s fabulous as leftovers so you can double the recipe and take some for lunch the next day.

Ingredients - to serve 4 as a side
1/2 small onion, sliced finely
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 - 1 (depending on how spicy you like things) fresh jalapeño, minced
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 can (14oz or 400g) chickpeas, rinsed well and drained
1/2 teaspoon flakey sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
2-3 small cucumbers (about oz or 300g)

Method
Sauté the vegetables in one tablespoon of the olive oil, over a low flame, until softened.

Add the chickpeas and heat until warmed through.

Sprinkle on the salt and pepper.  Add the vinegar and turn the heat up slightly. When the vinegar just begins to bubble, turn the fire off and add the rest of the olive oil.

Leave in the saucepan till cooled.

Meanwhile, cut the cucumbers in half lengthwise, then in half lengthwise again. Trim the soft seedy middles and discard. (Or feed to your kitchen helper. My pooch loves them.)

Cut the cucumbers into smaller pieces and put them in a bowl. Once the chickpeas are cool, pour the mixture over the cucumbers.

Stir to combine. Taste for salt, adding a bit more, if needed.

As I mentioned above, this spicy cucumber chickpea salad is great with fish or grilled meats. Or it can make a tasty lunch, just on its own. 

Enjoy!

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Halloumi Freekeh Peach Salad #FoodieExtravaganza

This halloumi freekeh peach salad features pan-fried salty cheese, nutty freekeh and sweet peaches along with baby arugula and spicy cashews for a delightfully fresh and filling meal. Drizzle it with chili peach vinaigrette or your favorite dressing.

My self-imposed Salad Month starts in earnest with this beautiful salad that is perfect for a full meal for two or a starter for four. It’s what we call “fancy salad” at our house, which means it has greens, fruit, cheese and nuts. These vary by what we have on hand or feel like eating but fancy salad should contain those four essential ingredients.

But since this month's Foodie Extravaganza ingredient is peaches, that is the fruit I chose. If you love summer peaches, you are going to love this salad and this edition of Foodie Extravaganza. Make sure to scroll down to the bottom to see the other lovely peach recipes we have for you today.

In this case, the freekeh, another of the so-called ancient grains, adds a little more bulk, making this a light but filling salad, perfect for lunch or dinner just on its own. The day I put it together, my husband was away from home on a business trip, so I served it up and then added the chili peach vinaigrette to my portion. I ate the rest the next day and it was still fabulous.

If you’ve never cooked freekeh, check out this info and easy instructions on BBC Good Food. I cooked a whole cup, which gave me more than enough for this salad, as well as leftovers to add to another salad, another day. It’s lovely and nutty tasting, and rather reminds me of bulgur wheat.

Halloumi Freekeh Peach Salad

Ingredients – for 2 dinner salads or 4 starter salads
7 oz or 200g halloumi cheese
1-2 teaspoons olive oil
4 1/2 oz or 130g baby arugula or rocket
1 cup or 160g cooked cracked freekeh, well drained and cooled (More information here. https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/glossary/freekeh)
3-4 small peaches (Mine were tiny! More like apricot size.) or 1-2 larger peaches
1/4 cup or 40g spicy cashews or your favorite nut
8-10 mint leaves, sliced thinly
Chili Peach Vinaigrette or your favorite sweet, tart and spicy dressing.

Method
Cut the halloumi into slices about 1/4 in or 1/2cm thick. Heat a non-stick frying pan over a medium high heat and drizzle in the olive oil. Pan-fry the halloumi just a minute or two on each side until both are golden.

Set aside. Pit and slice your peaches into wedges.

Assemble the salad starting with the arugula and top with the freekeh. Add in the golden halloumi broken roughly into bite-sized pieces, the sliced peaches and the cashews.

Stack the mint leaves one on top the other and slice thinly. Sprinkle over the salad.

Tip: This salad is great as leftovers if you haven’t added the dressing so I suggest that if you think you might not eat it all the day you make it, dress each serving, rather than dressing and tossing the entire salad.

Drizzle with chili peach vinaigrette or your favorite dressing.

Enjoy!

Many thanks to this month's Foodie Extravaganza host, Wendy from A Day in the Life on the Farm. Check out all of our peach recipes!

• Halloumi Freekeh Peach Salad by Food Lust People Love
• Honey Peach Ice Cream by Tara's Multicultural Table
• Mini Peaches and Cream French Toast Casserole by Cookaholic Wife
• Peach and Orange Smoothie by Sneha's Recipe
• Peach BBQ Sauce by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Peach Crumble Bars by Palatable Pastime
• Peach Panna Cotta by Caroline's Cooking
• Peach Sorbet by Hardly A Goddess
• Peach Tomato Salad with Herb Vinaigrette by Culinary Adventures with Camilla

Foodie Extravaganza celebrates obscure food holidays or shares recipes with the same ingredient or theme every month.

Posting day is always the first Wednesday of each month. If you are a blogger and would like to join our group and blog along with us, come join our Facebook group Foodie Extravaganza. We would love to have you!

If you're a reader looking for delicious recipes, check out our Foodie Extravaganza Pinterest Board!

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