Couscous, Lentil, and Arugula Salad

Honestly, I'm not a big salad fan, though over the years I've honed my preferences. I like salads with lots of stuff - a variety of vegetables, cheese, and nuts. I like my salads pre-tossed with the dressing so that it's evenly coated. And I prefer a flavorful vinaigrette to something creamy and gloppy. If I'm going to eat a salad for a main course, it's also got to have something else besides vegetables and dressing. Most people solve this by adding grilled chicken or steak or even cottage cheese or tuna. But this salad adds couscous and lentils.

The recipe for the dressing makes plenty, so feel free to halve it if you don't want the leftovers. Seeing as our first CSA delivery was this past Saturday, I made the whole recipe. This salad was very filling, but it also felt good on a hot evening to eat something so refreshing. I loved the peppery bite of the arugula with the sour tang of the lemon juice and the flavor of the Dijon mustard. I definitely found a salad I like.

Couscous, Lentil, and Arugula Salad with Garlic-Dijon Vinaigrette
source: Eating Well
Yields 4 large servings

Ingredients

Vinaigrette
* 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
* 1/2 cup lemon juice
* 1/2 cup red-wine vinegar
* 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
* 4 small cloves garlic, minced
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* Freshly ground pepper, to taste

Salad
* 1 1/4 cups vegetable broth, or water
* 1 cup whole-wheat couscous
* 2 1/2 cups water
* 1 cup French green lentils, or brown lentils, rinsed
* 4 cups arugula, any tough stems removed, or mixed salad greens
* 1 small cucumber, peeled, seeded and diced
* 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
* 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

Preparation

1. To prepare vinaigrette: Combine oil, lemon juice, vinegar, mustard and garlic in a blender, a jar with a tight-fitting lid or a medium bowl. Blend, shake or whisk until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.
2. To prepare salad: Bring 1 1/4 cups broth (or water) to a boil in a small saucepan. Add couscous, cover, remove from the heat and let stand until the liquid is absorbed, about 5 minutes.
3. Combine 2 1/2 cups water and lentils in another saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer, cover and cook until just tender, 15 to 25 minutes. (Green lentils will be done sooner than brown lentils.) Be careful not to overcook the lentils or they will fall apart in the salad. Drain any excess water and let cool for about 10 minutes.
4. If arugula leaves are large, tear into bite-size pieces. Toss arugula (or greens) with 1/4 cup of the vinaigrette in a large bowl, then divide among 4 large plates. In the same bowl, toss the couscous and lentils with another 1/4 cup vinaigrette; divide the mixture among the plates. Top each salad with cucumber, tomatoes and feta and drizzle each with 1 tablespoon vinaigrette. (Cover and refrigerate the remaining 1 cup vinaigrette for up to 1 week.)

Nutritional Information

Per serving: 549 calories; 18 g fat (5 g sat, 10 g mono); 17 mg cholesterol; 79 g carbohydrates; 22 g protein; 15 g fiber; 579 mg sodium; 630 mg potassium.