Autumn Pearl Couscous Salad

Name: Autumn Pearl Couscous Salad
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 25 min
Yield: 2 people
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: ¼ cup olive oil; 2 tablespoon spicy brown mustard, Dijon works too; 2 tablespoon lemon juice; 2 tablespoon orange juice, fresh; 2 tablespoon honey; 2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar; 1 teaspoon garlic, crushed; salt and pepper, to taste; 1 cup pearl couscous, cooked; ⅓ cup dried cranberries; ⅓ cup pecans; ¼ piece red onion, thinly sliced; 1 cup kale leaves, chopped; 1 cup butternut squash, pan fried or roasted

A fall salad of pearl couscous tossed with roasted butternut squash, kale, dried cranberries and pecans, dressed in a tangy mustard-citrus vinaigrette. It keeps well in the fridge and eats nicely cold as a make-ahead lunch.

2 people · 25 min · salad · American · vegetarian

Servings ×

Ingredients

Dressing

¼ cup olive oil
2 tablespoon spicy brown mustard, Dijon works too
2 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoon orange juice, fresh
2 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon garlic, crushed
salt and pepper, to taste

Couscous Salad

1 cup pearl couscous, cooked
⅓ cup dried cranberries
⅓ cup pecans
¼ piece red onion, thinly sliced
1 cup kale leaves, chopped
1 cup butternut squash, pan fried or roasted

Method

Combine all the ingredients of the dressing. Shake or stir well. Save extras in an airtight container or jar in the fridge if there are any. Taste and adjust if needed. Some may prefer sweeter or more acidic.
Toss the kale first in a spoon of dressing and massage it to make it more tender. Then, add the rest of the salad ingredients with about a 1/3 cup of dressing. How much dressing is up to you! Enjoy this salad cold. It is a great make-ahead meal prep salad to keep in the fridge.

Notes

To make this gluten-free, substitute the couscous with quinoa. To make it vegan, substitute the honey with syrup or agave. Dressing recipe has been modified slightly from youtube video.