Recipe: Warm Tahini-Citrus Couscous & Kale Salad with Baked Sweet Potato

Today I bring you a totally original recipe — that’s right, an inspiration from my own mind (though I’m sure others have had similar inspirations).

 

Couscous salad tastes great warm or cold. It easily stands alone as a full meal, but you could also enjoy it alongside some kind of protein main. The salad gains texture and chew from kale, color and flavor from cherry tomatoes and sweet potato. Tahini-citrus dressing rounds it off with creaminess and zing — they aren’t mutually exclusive.

You do have to prepare the separate components before mixing everything together, but I can’t stress enough how easily and quickly it all happens. Plus, if you’ve made my garlic-sautéed kale, you’ll notice that this uses just that! Feel free to customize to your tastes, and if you don’t have enough time to bake a sweet potato, just leave it out and your lunch will be ready even sooner.

• Kale, elsewhere: Kale Sautéed in Olive Oil & Garlic — Spinach Power Frittata — Dal with Spinach, Peas & Kale
• Sweet Potatoes, elsewhere: Sweet Potato Pancakes — Sweet Potato Rosemary Biscuits — Whole Wheat Sweet Potato Quick Bread — Spicy Sweet Potato Pancakes — Roasted Root Vegetables

Warm Tahini-Citrus Couscous & Kale Salad with Baked Sweet Potato (serves 4 generously)

Ingredients

• 2 sweet potatoes
• Salad:
  • 1 cup dry couscous + 2 cups boiling water
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 3-5 garlic cloves, peeled & sliced thinly
  • 1 large bunch kale, roughly chopped
  • 1.5 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
• Dressing:
  • juice of 1 lemon (or lime! I used one half of each)
  • 2-3 tbsp tahini
  • 2-4 tbsp olive oil
• to taste: salt & pepper

Procedure

• If using sweet potatoes, poke them a few times, place in a baking dish, and pop them in the oven at 400F (200C) for about an hour, until they’re soft.
• Make the couscous: Put the dry couscous in a small pot and pour the boiling water over it. Cover and let sit for 10 minutes, then fluff with a fork.
• Make the kale: Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook for a few minutes, then throw in the chopped kale and stir until it’s coated with oil. Cover and let cook, stirring occasionally, for 5-10 minutes or until the kale is relatively soft.
• Meanwhile, whisk together the lemon juice, tahini, olive oil, salt and pepper in a large mixing bowl. Add the halved tomatoes. When the couscous and kale are done, add them to the bowl and stir to combine.
• When the sweet potatoes are ready, you can roughly chop them and add them to the salad or just have them on the side.

Enjoy!