The idea of this week’s WIU was salads, and I was in a distinctively Mediterranean mood, so I pulled out an old copy of Vegetarian Times and made this concoction:

Couscous Salad With Fresh Mango

Serves one, five or six times

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 box couscous
  • 2 Tbsp. Orange Juice
  • 1 Tbsp. Tahini
  • 1 cup plain low-fat yogurt or soft tofu (I used the tofu to keep everything vegan)
  • 1/2 tsp. cumin
  • pinch ground ginger
  • 1 large mango, diced
  • 1/2 cup chickpeas, drained and rinsed. (I just used the whole can)
  • 1/4 cup golden raisins (Turned out to be only one of the mini-boxes)
  • 1/4 cup chopped cilantro (I used rosemary from my garden)

METHOD:

In a smallish saucepan, cook the couscous according to the package directions. I used the “optional” olive oil, FYI. While that’s cooking, get a smallish bowl and mix the tahini and orange juice until smoothish. Warning: tahini has the consistency of natural peanut butter, oil separation and all, so give yourself some extra time to stir it up. In a large bowl, whisk the yogurt or tofu. If you’re like me and you realized too late that the “soft” tofu was actually pretty damn firm, just mush it as much as you can with a fork. When you feel like you’ve got it into a nice consistency, mix in the tahini mix, cumin, and ginger, followed by the mango, chickpeas and raisins. Fluff the couscous with a fork, and add to the mixture along with the cilantro or rosemary or whatever. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Goes well with pita, hummus and a Killian's.

Goes well with pita, hummus and a Killian's

Was there something you wanted to ask?

Was the recipe easy to follow?
Yeah, except for some reason the way it printed out, the ingredients weren’t listed in the order that they got added, which is very annoying. I fixed that up there. Other than that, super duper easy.

Did the dish taste good?
It did, in fact. IMHO, there’s nary a thing that doesn’t taste good when fresh mango is involved. Also, this dish was again served to non-vegetarians at a barbecue, and they ate it and seemed to enjoy it, so it’s yet another cross-over hit. Of course, they also ate their cheeseburgers with aplomb, so I can’t say that I’ve converted anyone…

Would you make it again?
I think I would. The original plan was to have this with falafel and pita and eat it for lunch, but then I got sick, and the idea of eating anything that took more time to cook than Ramen was impossible. So when I’m feeling better again, I might give it another go. I’d like to see how it is with yogurt instead of tofu. I bet it’s a bit smoother.

So we’re almost done with this Whip It Up thing we’ve been doing.  Next week finishes up with desserts, and I’m thinking about trying either vegan cupcakes or carrot cake.  It’s going to be a bit of a challenge.  I’ve never made a vegan dessert before that was more complicated than “slice a mango.”  Anyone have any advice or suggestions?