I hereby declare this summer of cold salads!  In the past week, I have whipped up large batches of hearty, cold salads that have pleased me to no end.  They are healthy, tasty meals that are easy to make ahead of time and make wonderful leftovers throughout the week.  Consider this a warning.  If you are a regular reader, you may be cursing me by August, “not another salad recipe!”   Because here they come…

And, if you have any favorites or suggestions, please post links in the Comments.  Whooopeee.. here’s to summer!
Couscous Salad with Almonds, Cranberries and Chicken

adapted from Cooking Light

1 cup orange juice, divided
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon salt, divided
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon black pepper, divided
1 cup uncooked couscous
1/4 cup sweetened dried cranberries
1/4 cup sliced almonds
1 1/2 cups chopped, cooked chicken breast
1 cup chopped cucumber
1/3 cup chopped green onion
3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 1/2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Combine 3/4 cup orange juice, water, 1/2 teaspoon salt, coriander, cinnamon, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper in a saucepan; bring to a boil. Remove from heat; add couscous and cranberries. Cover and let stand 5 minutes; fluff with a fork. Transfer couscous mixture to a large bowl.Heat a small skillet over medium heat. Add nuts to pan; cook 3 minutes or until toasted, stirring frequently. Add nuts, chicken, and next 3 ingredients (through cilantro) to couscous; toss.Combine remaining 1/4 cup orange juice, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/8 teaspoon pepper, lime juice, and mustard, stirring with a whisk. Gradually add oil to juice mixture, stirring constantly with a whisk. Drizzle juice mixture over couscous mixture, tossing to coat.

This entry was posted on Thursday, June 5th, 2008 at 4:14 pm and is filed under Soups & Salads. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.