Tag Archives: salad

Olive Couscous Salad

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A simple title for a simple dish.

Catching the tail end of last week’s couscous‘ popularity, I offer you this rendition. It proves a few things: that couscous is the blankest of blank canvases, that the simple flavors of pure foods is unbeatable, and that lunch at work need never be boring again.

You need:

- 2/3 cup dry couscous, prepared howsoever you prefer…

- 4 cloves garlic

- 1-2 tbsp olive oil

- 2-3 tsp apple cider vinegar

- salt and pep

- 1/3 large, red onion

- 1/2 cup flat leaf parsley

- 1 1/3 cups greek olive mix (or whichevers you’ve got a special place in your heart for)

Mashed garlic forms the base of the dressing. I used the garlic I had thrown in the pot with the couscous, so it was warm and fragrant and practically begging to be turned into garlic-paste.

How could I refuse?

Once mashed, mix with the other dressing ingredients: lemon juice, salt, pepper, apple cider vinegar, olive oil. In a moment of serendipitous genius, I added a tablespoon or so of the liquid in the container that had ever-so-kindly been housing my olives for the past week…I highly recommend you do the same.

After that…

Dice the onion and parsley. And then grab your starlet and let her do her thing. Her sweet, salty, and somewhat briny thing. I’ve a penchant for olives and so choosing between them, well it simply couldn’t be done.

I’ve saved you the trouble of choosing as well and both you and your taste buds will thank me. The variety adds the subtlest complexity to an otherwise very straightforward dish.

Lunch is served, my dears. Eat up!

(Makes 3 lunch-sized portions)

Not-So-Sunday

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Oh how I wish this was about to be the perfect lazy Sunday. I’d stay in bed or loll about the park…

But it isn’t! I’ve work to do!

My only reconciliation is that last night proved a perfect summer evening.

A salad the size of a watermelon…or my head (they’re comparable in nature).

A cocktail the size of my little finger.

And dear, dear friends.

Wait! Of course it isn’t over! If we’re declaring it a perfect summer’s eve… there had to be this:

A chocolate sundae from Mr. Softee (I swear the truck follows me) to end the night.

I’m off to work, but I had a thought…when I first started this little blog and was averaging an overwhelming 12 views per day, I wrote perhaps my favorite post…

It’s called “Jack and the Road” and if you haven’t read it, I thought it might be fun to resurface it :-)

Let me know what you think! Click the title or here to view! And have a wonderful Sunday!

 

 

 

 

 

PomWonderful

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Earlier this week, as I was perusing the shelves of my one true love Whole Foods, these little gems found their way into my cart.

Obviously someone has been munching ;-) Let’s talk about how! and why!

Pomegranates earned superfood-status centuries ago.  The Babylonians used to eat them before battle believing they made them invincible. Ancient Egyptians were known to bury themselves with the fruit. Obviously, the Babylonians were a little off about what this fruit is capable of, and who knows what the Egyptians had up their sleeves. But, don’t despair, they were still on to something.

Like most foods of this color (raspberries, blackberries, cranberries) these little guys are packed with anti-oxidants, almost 3x the amount in a glass of red wine. To understand that significance, picture a bike. If it’s outside too long, it starts rusting. Why?  Because of oxidation, oxygen molecules literally eating away at it (if curious, they’re “eating” at the bike’s electrons).

A similar process happens in your body every day. So anti-oxidants combat these processes and return cells to their normal state, preventing diseases that grow from damaged cells (like cancer).

Some other pomegranate benefits? Heart Protection. Fighting Osteoarthritis (a painful joint disorder). Warding off Prostate Cancer. Lowering Bad Cholesterol…Hooked yet? No? Alright, I’ll continue. They also lower blood pressure, fight breast cancer, and protect newborn brains.

So let’s eat already!

They’ve been adding the oh-so-perfect pop of flavor to my morning yogurt bowl. I spoon about 2 tablespoons (~20kcals) on top of some Chobani greek yogurt, slice a small banana, drizzle some honey, dust on a bit of cinnamon and dig in! With the other flavors blending so well together, these stick out in the best way possible.

Another use? They make for a phenomenal salad topper.

Once spring rolls around, we’re all tempted to garnish with strawberries and blueberries, but try mixing it up with these. They take my usual (albeit, boring) salad of greens, cottage cheese, and nuts to an entirely new level.

They’re crunchy, they’re bursting with flavor and juice, and you’ll feel pretty darn-tootin’ good about yourself while eating them!

 

More information on pomegranates can be found here or here.