AnnieNC of Churches in Venice had the pleasure of selecting this week's salad. These are her notes:
I found this recipe on the McCormick spice website after a friend brought me a big bag of cinnamon from Vietnam and I started looking for savory recipes to use it in. The recipe was created by Suzanne Goins from the Los Angeles restaurant Luques.
I use whole wheat couscous and sometimes substitute dried apricots for the dates. You can also use vegetable broth instead of chicken broth.
Vietnamese cinnamon is pretty strong so if you're using regular cinnamon, you might want to use a little bit more. This is a great party/potluck recipe (it keeps and travels well).
Couscous Salad with Chickpeas, Dates & Cinnamon
Serves 8
Ingredients:
3 green onions
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 (14.5 ounce) can chicken broth
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (preferably Vietnamese)
1/2 teaspoon black pepper, divided
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1 (10 ounce) package couscous
3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
6 tablespoons olive oil
1 (19 ounce) can chickpeas, rinsed and
drained
2 cups shredded carrots
1 cup dates, pitted and roughly chopped
1/4 cup pinenuts, toasted
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
(optional)
Instructions:
Finely dice white end of green onions. Slice green parts of green onions and reserve for salad. Gently cook white onion pieces in olive oil 5-7 minutes in a medium saucepan. Stir in chicken broth, cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper and red pepper. Bring to a boil; add couscous. Cover and remove pan from heat. Let stand 5 minutes.
Whisk together vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon salt and olive oil in a small bowl.
Fluff couscous with a fork; put in a large bowl. Toss in sliced green onions, chickpeas, carrots, dates, pinenuts, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and remaining 1/4 teaspoon black pepper; add vinaigrette and toss again. Serve right away or chill. Garnish with cilantro, if desired.
Our salad for dinner last night was great - another keeper! It seems like I have said that about each of the weekly salads we have made, but they have ALL been yummy!
I used chopped dates, as the recipe called for, but I think I will try dried apricots next time, as suggested by Annie. I also threw a few more toasted pine nuts on top, along with some chopped chives that I had in the fridge.
It was a great accompaniment to grilled chicken. The recipe made a lot - probably enough for six or eight as a side dish. I am also thinking about adding some kind of protein to the salad to turn it into a one dish meal - maybe pork or chicken chunks.
Here are my ingredients:
And the finished product:
Comments (6)
It was a great salad wasn't it! I see that you weren't lazy like I was and actually grated your own carrots! *smile* I like the idea of mixing in some protein and calling it 'dinner'.
I agree with you - they have all been really good.
Posted by Jerry | August 9, 2009 4:53 AM
Posted on August 9, 2009 04:53
I'm glad you enjoyed it. Great idea about adding some protein to make it a main-dish salad; I'll have to try that too.
Posted by Annie | August 9, 2009 6:16 AM
Posted on August 9, 2009 06:16
Hi Nancy, your salad looks very delicious. And I always like looking at your ingredients set up, because sometimes I'm not sure if I found the right things and looking at your photos always gives me an idea of what I'm looking for. I had my salad last night by iself as a meal and loved it, but I really like your idea of adding some chunks of chicken to it. I'll have to try that next time. I have to commend you too, especially since I bought a package of already shredded carrots. :)
Have a great Sunday1
Posted by Kathy (Trekcapri) | August 9, 2009 7:56 AM
Posted on August 9, 2009 07:56
Looks great,Nancy. I had it with a chicken breast on the side, but what a great idea to chop it in with the salad.
You are right, they all have been great!
Posted by candi | August 9, 2009 11:35 AM
Posted on August 9, 2009 11:35
You ingredients look almost the same as mine. :)
I finally made all the salads I missed while being away. Your watermelon salad was a hit last night. I made your first test recipe. It was really good!
Happy Sunday!
Posted by María I. | August 9, 2009 2:10 PM
Posted on August 9, 2009 14:10
Me again...I checked the recipe that I'd printed out from online and it said that it serves 8 people. Sorry that I left that info off!
Posted by Annie | August 10, 2009 5:59 AM
Posted on August 10, 2009 05:59