Replace the cous cous, make it more diabetic friendly!

Cous cous and me ~ never really went together until very recently. I wanted to produce a healthy yet filling salad and needed quinoa in this recipe, but unfortunately my local store did not have any so I resorted to cous cous instead.

I was pleasantly surprised! I managed to dress it up with great fresh ingredients plus a tangy yet pungent mustard and olive oil dressing. The lemon in the dressing refreshed the simple cous cous, the mustard and garlic gave it that punch to vitalize all the salad ingredients!

I opted for QUINOA initially as I wanted to add this salad dish to Priya’s amazing sugarfree sweetheart blog as it is

Couscous is not an unhealthy food, but it lacks the fiber, B vitamins, and minerals found in whole grains such as barley, bulgar, and quinoa. These whole grain foods also have a lower glycemic index which is healthier for diabetics

So on that note I would replace the cous cous with the whole grains mentioned above as I first intended to make it diabetic friendly!

Is Couscous Healthy then? It’s has a decent source of thiamine and niacin – and is an excellent source of the antioxidant mineral selenium. On the plus side, it is fat-free and a decent source of protein, with a full cup of cooked couscous containing six grams of protein!

So either way still healthy with the vitamins from the salad ingredients plus the iron from the baby spinach

INGREDIENTS

12 cherry tomatoes halved
½ cucumber chopped into fine quarter chunks
2 big handfuls of fresh baby spinach leaves
1 cup cous cous
1½ cups water

Dressing
4-5 tbsp olive oil
1½ tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 small garlic clove crushed
¼ tsp English mustard
½ tsp dried oregano
Pinch of salt

METHOD

To cook the cous cous ~
• Boil the water, add the cous cous grains and simmer on a medium-low heat for 5 minutes

• Turn off the heat, cover and let it cook in its own steam for a further 10 minutes

For the dressing ~
• Put all the ingredients together and combine well, making sure that the mustard especially has emalgamated with the olive oil

• Place all the chopped salad vegetables into a large mixing bowl, add the cooked cous cous and drizzle in the mustard and olive oil dressing