Blog Post: Crunchy and Sweet Couscous

Every time I make couscous, it’s a big hit with kids and adults. Sometimes I just serve it plain and other times I mix in a few ingredients, depending on the main dish. It’s fun to experiment with and it doesn’t seem to matter what I add – it’s always flavorful.

Recently when I brought this side dish to a BBQ, I knew it would be a crowd-pleaser and not your typical corn, salads, beans, etc. Not to say those aren’t great sides, but I wanted to bring something different. So couscous it was.

I often make a mixed green salad with the ingredients in this recipe, but a simple couscous swap and, voila, a whole new salad with fantastic taste! I changed the dressing slightly and it came out perfect.

Here’s what you need and how I made it:

Couscous

4 c water

2 t salt

4 T unsalted butter

4 c dry couscous (I used whole wheat but plain would be great too)

Mix-ins

½ c raw pecans, broken up, lightly toasted

½ c raw slivered almonds, lightly toasted

¼ c sugar

1 c dried cranberries

6 oz crumbled feta

Dressing

¼ c olive oil

½ c white wine vinegar

½ t garlic powder

¼ t salt

¼ t pepper

squeeze of lemon (optional)

To make the couscous, add water and salt to a large pot. When the water comes to a boil, add dry couscous and remove from the heat. Let it sit, covered, for five minutes and then fluff with a fork. The recipe makes a lot of couscous so depending on the size of your pot, you may need to transfer the cooked couscous to a larger bowl to fluff and mix in your other ingredients more easily.

While the couscous is cooling, lightly toast pecans and almonds in a single layer in the toaster. Add to a medium heated pan and pour sugar over them. When the sugar starts to melt, mix it with the nuts until all the sugar has melted and the mixture is thoroughly combined. Watch it carefully because you don’t want the sugar to burn. Spread nuts on a sheet of waxed paper. Once cooled, break the candied nuts apart.

In a separate bowl, whisk the dressing ingredients and pour over the cooled couscous.  Add the nuts, cranberries and feta. Mix it all together and top with a squeeze of lemon.   

Transfer to a festive bowl and you are ready to go to a BBQ.

Enjoy!