Loaded Fresh Basil and Sweet Corn Couscous Green Salad
Yield: 8servings
Prep Time: 1 hourhr30 minutesmins
Cook Time: 15 minutesmins
Total Time: 1 hourhr45 minutesmins
Ingredients
Fresh Basil Dressing:
½cupbuttermilk
½cuplightly packed fresh basil leaves
½cupmayonnaise (see note)
¼cupred wine vinegar
2tablespoonschopped shallot or green onion
¼teaspoonsalt
Pinchblack pepper
Salad:
1box(5.8 ounces) roasted garlic and olive oil couscous (see note)
1tablespoonolive oil
1 ¼cupschicken broth
12-15cupschopped romaine lettuce (see note)
6-8strips bacon, cooked and crumbled or chopped
1cupdried cranberries or cherries
1cupfresh or frozen corn kernels (thaw frozen corn before using)
½cupfreshly grated or peeled Parmesan cheese (see note)
½cuptoasted pine nuts
Instructions
For the dressing: combine all the ingredients in a blender together and process until smooth. Refrigerate until needed. Dressing can be made several days in advance (flavor gets better with time).
For the salad: make the couscous by bringing the chicken broth and olive oil to a simmer in a saucepan on the stovetop. Stir in the couscous and the seasoning packet (if using the roasted garlic variety). Cover the saucepan and let sit for 5-7 minutes. Fluff with a fork and let cool to room temperature before using.
In a large serving bowl, add the romaine lettuce, cooled couscous, cranberries, bacon, cheese, corn, and pine nuts.
Drizzle with dressing and toss to combine (or serve dressing on the side).
Notes
Mayo: the mayo helps bind the dressing so it doesn't separate (and so it isn't too thin). I often use the full 1/2 cup mayo but sometimes I use 1/4 cup mayo + 1/4 cup sour cream. Couscous: If you can't find or don't want to use roasted garlic couscous from a box, you can use bulk or bagged Moroccan (small) couscous without any seasonings. Use about 3/4 cup. Bring 1 1/4 cup chicken broth to a simmer, add the couscous + 1/2 teaspoon salt, stir, cover, and let sit for 5 minutes. Fluff couscous and let cool completely before using. Romaine: you'll need about 3-4 romaine hearts (like the ones at Costco) or 1-2 large heads of romaine.Parmesan: I like to use a vegetable peeler and peel off shreds of Parmesan but it can also be freshly grated (use the large holes of a box grater).Pine Nuts: I use this easy microwave method for toasting the pine nuts for this salad.