Summer Garden Couscous Salad

I actually can't claim this recipe. This one was all my husband. He called me a couple weeks ago bragging about a recipe that he made from the newest Simple and Delicious magazine when it arrived at our house - I'm actually quite impressed that he read it :-) 

Regardless of that, he definitely found a great recipe! We made it again while I was down there last weekend to take to a 4th of July barbecue, and I have to agree with him. It's a great salad.  How can you argue with a salad full of summer's fresh produce mixed with feta, couscous, and a lemon vinaigrette? I can vouch for the fact that it also makes a great lunch!

The only change we made was to substitute about half a package of thawed, frozen sweet corn for the fresh ears of corn. I just wasn't able to find any corn that seemed like it was quite "ready" yet. Maybe as the summer goes on a little more? Mel has a great method for cooking corn on the cob here at My Kitchen Cafe that sounds great so I'm adding into the recipe. Check out her method! We also didn't measure the tomatoes - just put in the whole package of cherry tomatoes. That's the great thing about recipes like this - you could probably add a series of other veggies too. They can incorporate whatever you like. Enjoy! 

(Printable Recipe)

Summer Garden Couscous Salad
From Simple and Delicious, submitted by Priscilla Yee and My Kitchen Cafe for the corn

Ingredients:
3 medium ears sweet corn, husks removed (or 1/2 pkg. thawed, frozen sweet corn)
1 c. reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 c. uncooked couscous
1 medium cucumber, halved and sliced
1 pkg. cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 c. crumbled feta cheese
1/4 c. chopped red onion
3 Tbsp. minced fresh parsley
3 Tbsp. olive oil
3 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. dried oregano
3/4 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper

Bring water to a boil in a Dutch oven. Add a little bit of white sugar and a splash of white vinegar (maybe 1 tsp. at most for 3 ears of corn) and bring it back to a boil. Add the corn and bring to a boil one more time; cover, remove from heat and let the corn sit in the water for about 10 minutes. Meanwhile in a small saucepan, bring broth to a boil. Stir in couscous. Remove from the heat; cover and let stand for 5-10 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Fluff with a fork and set aside to cool slightly.

In a large bowl, combine the cucumber, tomatoes, cheese, onion, and parsley. Drain the corn and pat dry; cut kernels from the cobs. Add to cucumber mixture. Stir in couscous.

In a small bowl, whisk the oil, lemon juice, and seasonings. Pour over the couscous mixture and toss to coat. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate until chilled.