Vegetable Couscous
Couscous
Couscous is one of my favourite foods because it allows you to be as creative as you want. For it accepts the smallest to the biggest and boldest flavours. I love the way it is cooked in Moroccan cuisine, the aromas excite me. I decided I would create my own vegetarian couscous dish after being inspired by a lovely recipe I found. The recipe taught me how to cook couscous by just adding boiling water rather than cooking it in a saucepan and constantly contemplating whether you added the right amount of water. My couscous is scrumptious and includes a delectable crunch from lightly toasted almonds.
This recipe was adapted from ‘The Detox Diet Cookbook’ (London: Lorenz Books, 2000).
This will serve 4 – 6 people.
Ingredients:
240g couscous, 500ml boiling vegetable stock (made from just over 1/2 a stock cube), 8 green olives (I brought mine pre marinated in herb oil), 1 big courgette, 25g flaked almonds toasted), 4 tbsps olive oil, 1 tbsp lemon juice, 1 tbsp chopped fresh coriander, 1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley, 4 tsps mixed spice, 4 tsps paprika.
Method:
1. Place the couscous in a bowl and pour boiling vegetable stock over it.
2. Stir a little then set aside for roughly 10 minutes.
3. Wash, prepare and chop up the courgette into small pieces.
4. Half the olives.
5. When the stock has been absorbed into the couscous fluff it up with a fork.
6. Add the courgettes, olives and toasted almonds to the couscous then mix gently.
7. In a small bowl mix the olive oil, lemon juice, spices and herbs.
8. Pour over the couscous and stir in.