A salad doesn’t necessarily need to be on a bed of lettuce, not does it have to be boring and put together at the last-minute. Salads can be zesty, fruity, crunchy and even have a bit of carbohydrates for good measure! My newly discovered love for couscous, sees me pairing it up with greens, fruits and cheese often. While many people mistake couscous for a pasta, though its made of durum wheat the manufacturing process is very different, The wheat  is crushed rather than ground up to make the pasta. What i love about couscous in a salad is that it gives the salad a beautiful texture. 

Couscous comes in varies textures and flavours, for this salad, since i was going to pair it with a Mediterranean Lemon Chicken, I used Harissa Spiced Couscous, but you could use pearl couscous too. One of the most important steps while making the couscous is to give it enough time to swell in the hot water. Add just enough water so that your pearls don’t get all gooey and mashed up.

Time taken: 30 minutes

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Cooking time: 10 minutes

Skill level: Basic

Serves: 4 adults

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of couscous cooked as per instructions on the box
• 1/4 cup sliced red onions
• 1/2 cup strawberry, quartered
• 1/ cup pomegranate pearls
• 1 cup Arugula leaves,chopped
• 1/2 cup parsley leaves, chopped
• 1/4 cup almonds, roasted and chopped (you can use pine nuts too)
• 1/2 cup mixed coloured bell peppers, chopped
• 1/4 cup feta, crumbled
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 2 tablespoons mix of black sesame seeds, sunflower seeds and flax seeds
• 10-12 golden raisins, plumped up in hot water

Method:

1. Mix the Arugula, parsley, bell peppers, onions and place it in a bowl.
2. In a serving dish, start layering the salad.
3. Add a layer of couscous, the green mix, strawberry, feta, almonds and raisins. Repeat and create the second lot of layers.
4. Make a dressing by adding all dressing ingredients in a small bowl. Shake it up and pour oven the salad.
5. Toss dressing over salad and top with the seed mix.
6. Toss the salad just before serving.