Nutty couscous, spicy-sweet pumpkin, juicy orange and refreshing mint, and all melting in your mouth. Delicious and nutritious.
This Moroccan style salad can be served as breakfast, lunch or dessert. Kids love this salad for its naturally sweet taste. It makes this salad welcome for the school lunch box.
Ingredients
for 4 serves- 1 cup dry couscous, or 4 cups cooked couscous
- 1 kg pumpkin, peeled and cubed
- 1 sweet orange, peeled and divided to segments
- 50 g raisins or dried currants or dried cranberries
- a handful of fresh mint leaves
- 3 Tbs of maple syrup or honey
- 3 Tbs Extra Virgin Olive oil
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- pinch of salt
- pinch of cayenne pepper
Directions
Preheat the oven up to 200C.
Put the pumpkin into a baking dish, drizzle with olive oil and mix well. Seal the foil over baking dish and make a couple of holes in the foil with a sharp knife to go out steam. Bake in the oven for half an hour, or until soft and tender. Set aside to cool.
Meanwhile, prepare couscous following the package instructions.
I use instant couscous. This is couscous that has already been steamed and dried for us. It only needs to be mixed with boiling water and allowed to sit undisturbed for a few minutes before being ready to eat.
Preheat a medium-size saucepan, add a splash of olive oil. Add a cup of couscous (I use a measuring cup 235 ml), mix well and cook a few minutes, stirring occasionally. Pour in a cup of boiling water ( ratio of one to one). Add a pinch of salt, gently stir, cover with a lid and leave for 5 minutes. Gently break apart and fluff the cooked couscous with a fork.
Place the couscous, pumpkin, raisins, orange segments and chopped mint in a large bowl. For the dressing, combine in a small bowl the maple syrup, remaining olive oil, cinnamon, salt and pepper. Mix well using a whisk. Pour it over the salad and toss gently to combine. Serve warm or chilled. Enjoy!
