Ina Fridays -- Main Courses -- Israeli Couscous & Tuna Salad

   I'm going on vacation after this post. The blog is going with me.  See you late June! 

If you weren't up for a new tuna salad, this full-of-flavor high-five salad from Ina Garten's newest book BAREFOOT CONTESSA:  FOOLPROOF; RECIPES YOU CAN TRUST, might make you change your mind.  Made from a good many pantry ingredients (canned tuna, Israeli couscous, roasted tomatoes, olive oil) plus a short list of freshly-purchased ones (oil-cured olives, lemon, herbs), this meal comes together in about fifteen easy minutes.  While the couscous cooks, you're doing a bit of chopping; by the time the couscous is done, you're mixing up and serving.

Great for a hot night on the patio, you could stir this up in the morning before the heat begins--or even the night before.  Pop it in the frig and you're all set.  Leftovers are perfect for lunches.

38 Power Foods, Week 15 -- Winter Squash -- Israeli Couscous-Butternut Squash Salad with Fall Fruit, Cheese and Orange Vinaigrette

Israeli (Pearl) Couscous, butternut squash, apples, pears, figs, cranberries, cheese, and pecans with an orange vinaigrette--cornucopia salad.

How are new salads born at my house?    Like this......

I've had some Israeli couscous (actually a blend) in my cabinet for a few months.  Waiting.
Typically I throw some leeks, garlic, and asparagus in a sauté pan come spring and throw those lovely things into a bowl of couscous or orzo with a handful of grated Parmesan and lots of black pepper.

Toasted Israeli Couscous Primavera--All from Trader Joe's

Welcome spring!

If you shop Trader Joe's, you might know Israeli couscous--a bit more like round orzo than couscous.  Maybe you buy it?  And if you live in the metro D.C. area or read papers online, you might have read a recipe from the Washington Post a few weeks ago for a Toasted Israeli Couscous Primavera.  I do not live in the D.C. area, though I did for years; these days my traveling husband occasionally brings me a WP home to Saint Paul.  I'm always glad to get it because it was the first paper away from Chicago to which I became really attached.   And as a food blogger, I like seeing what's going on somewhere else food-wise.   If  you're a regular reader, you know I rarely blog a recipe from a newspaper.  Until recently when I jumped on board the fun 50 Women Game-Changers in Food blogging adventure, I  blogged almost exclusively original recipes. This one's yummy, though, and I wanted it on my own site--if only for my own self!  You can, and I did, buy everything you need to make this recipe at any Trader Joe's.