Couscous, Black Bean & Corn Salad

Happy Meatless Monday everyone!!I made this couscous salad for a bar-b-que we had with the kids yesterday on Mother's Day. Our first BBQ of the season!This salad was super easy to make - and easy to improvise with if you're running short of time and have to use what you have on hand (as pretty much ALWAYS happens to me).

Ingredients:

The essentials:

• 1 box - approximately 1 1/3 cups Israeli pearl couscous, uncooked
• 1-3/4 cups vegetable broth
• 1- 15 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 cup frozen corn, thawed
• 4 Tablespoons olive oil (3 Tablespoons if using regular couscous)
• 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
• 2 Tablespoons lime juice - I had only 1 tablespoon of lime juice left, so I picked a Meyer lemon from my tree and squeezed half of it in too
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• salt and pepper to taste
• approximately 1 Tablespoon cilantro, chopped - adjust to taste and add more if you LOVE cilantro

I used the Israeli pearl couscous from Trader Joe's:But, you can also use "regular" couscous if that's what you have on hand. If this is the case use, adjust the couscous and broth above as follows:

• 1 cup regular couscous, uncooked
• 1-1/4 cups vegetable broth

The "throw-ins" and options:what I used:

• 1 medium tomato, diced
• 1 cup diced cucumber
• 1/4 shallot diced (use more if you like)
• dash of chili powder

other options:

• 1 green or red bell pepper, diced
• 4 scallions, chopped
• anything that sounds yummy to you - be creative!

Directions:

1. Prepare Couscous:For Israeli couscous - prepare according to box - heat 1 Tablespoon of olive oil in a pot on medium high heat. Saute the couscous until browning - approximately 5 minutes. Add boiling vegetable broth to pot and return to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low, cover and simmer approximately 12 minutes.For regular couscous - Bring vegetable broth to a boil in a medium pot. Add couscous, stir and cover. Turn off heat and leave for 5 minutes.2. Fluff couscous with a fork very well.3. Prepare the dressing in a large bowl by whisking together remaining olive oil, vinegar, lime juice and cumin. Add salt and pepper to taste.4. Add the black beans, corn, and other throw-ins: tomatoes, bell pepper, scallions, cucumber, etc. to the couscous and toss together. (I kept my cucumber on the side as my son-in-law Robert has an allergy to them - in case you're wondering why you don't see them in the photo below)5. Top with the dressing and toss again -adjust seasonings if necessary adding more salt and pepper if desired.6. Add the cilantro at the end and sprinkle with a dash of chili powder (if desired).7. Toss again and refrigerate to let the flavors blend.Enjoy!!