Great Find: Whole Wheat Pearl Couscous

I’ve seen whole wheat pearl couscous at my local supermarket, but just got around to trying it this weekend. I’m sold on it. It’s delicious, is a good source of fiber, and cooks in boiling water in less than 10 minutes.

This is my first experiment, but the couscous would be good not only in springtime salads such as this one, but in soups, too. It would make an easy side dish on its own tossed with a little olive oil, salt, and pepper, or you could fancy it up with sautéed onions and garlic and some fresh herbs. A great find for making healthy meals in a hurry!

Pearl Couscous and Cucumber Salad

Makes 4 servings

3/4 cup whole wheat pearl couscous

1 medium lemon

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Pinch of freshly ground pepper

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

2 radishes, diced

1 thin scallion, thinly sliced

1/2 of a hothouse cucumber, peeled and diced

1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley

Bring a medium saucepan of water to a boil and stir in the couscous. Return to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer until the couscous is tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain in a colander and rinse under cold running water until cool. Drain well.

While the couscous cooks, grate the zest from the lemon and place it in a medium bowl. Squeeze the juice from the lemon and add to the zest. Add the salt and pepper, then slowly whisk in the olive oil. Add the radishes, scallion, cucumber, and parsley. Add the couscous and toss to coat. Serve at once or cover and refrigerate up to 2 days.

Each serving: 23 g carbohydrate, 149 calories, 4 g fat, 1 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 4 g fiber, 5 g protein, 150 mg sodium

Carb Choices: 1 1/2; Exchanges: 1 1/2 starch, 1 fat

Note: Use your imagination and what’s on hand to vary this easy salad. Add canned garbanzo or cannellini beans; canned tuna or salmon; diced chicken or shrimp; diced bell pepper, fresh fennel, or summer squash; or crumbled feta cheese.

Lemon Vinaigrette to Eat with Everything

I’ve been emailing with a friend today discussing whether people actually still cook or not. I don’t think I’m a good judge of whether people do or do not cook. I am so consumed every day with cooking for myself and convincing other people to cook through this blog and my recipe development projects that I just assume everyone starts with fresh ingredients and makes themselves a healthful and delicious dinner every night. Don’t they?

According to my friend, people don’t have time to cook. They buy pre-fab food at Costco, eat fast food, or get food delivered. I say: You’re killing yourself if you’re not cooking. Especially when it’s so easy and so delicious!

Yesterday I made this wonderful lemon vinaigrette that takes about 5 minutes to make and is perfect to drizzle on almost anything. It’s made by simply pureeing the lemon segments—which give it potent lemon flavor—and then whisking in some olive oil. I had it with a pan seared fish that took about 3 minutes to make, but use it for grilled or baked salmon, chicken, shrimp, scallops, or on green salad, pasta salad, roasted vegetables…it’s good on almost anything. You can make a double batch and refrigerate it for up to a week.

Recipes like this one that you can make ahead and serve with a lot of different foods will inspire you to cook every day. When food is this simple and this good, I am baffled as to why people don’t want to cook.

Lemon Vinaigrette

Makes generous 1/4 cup

1 medium lemon, well scrubbed

1 teaspoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Pinch of freshly ground pepper

Grate the zest from the lemon and transfer the zest to a small bowl. Use a sharp knife to cut away the peel and the white pith.

Holding the lemon over another small bowl, carefully cut along both sides of each section to free them from the membrane and let the sections fall into the bowl. Squeeze the juice from the membrane into the bowl and then remove any seeds from the sections. Transfer the sections and the juice to a blender. Add the sugar and salt and puree until smooth.

Transfer the puree to the bowl with the zest. Slowly whisk in the olive oil, then whisk in the pepper.

Each serving (generous 1 tablespoon): 3 g carbohydrate, 73 calories, 7 g fat, 0 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 0 g fiber, 0 g protein, 70 mg sodium

Carb Choices: None; Exchanges: 1 1/2 fat