Wednesday, October 1, 2008

The Nothing Special


The fact is: you have to eat. Unfortunately, meals can’t always be glamorous and extravagant, but they can always be delicious. This recipe for oven-roasted vegetables and couscous salad is great for when you want maximum flavor and nourishment but have minimal desire to slave away. I eat it at least once a week. Euan calls it Couscous Delight and has his drizzled with balsamic whereas I prefer a grating of parmesan and a twist of black pepper over the top. So it’s not that original. But the sheer variety of recipes out there combined with the flexibility to combine just about whatever vegetables you can get your hands on makes this one a great standby. Take comfort in simplicity. Mark Bittman would be proud of me.

Oven-Roasted Vegetable Couscous Salad
Ingredients:
1 cup couscous (I use wholewheat)
¾ cup vegetable stock, boiling hot
3 Tbsp. olive oil
2 cups chopped fresh vegetables, such as carrots, onions, zucchini, eggplant, peppers, sweet potato, tomatoes, mushrooms, etc. (you get the idea…)
2 cloves fresh garlic, chopped
Pinch red pepper flakes
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F/190 degrees C. Prep your vegetables, making sure they are chopped to about equal bite-sized pieces. Place in an oven-proof dish, combine with the garlic and pepper flakes. Season to taste and drizzle with the olive oil, mixing everything together with your hands. Roast for 25-30 minutes, stirring occasionally to ensure even cooking.
Take a break and watch half an hour of TV.
Place the couscous in a serving bowl and pour over the hot stock. Cover and let stand for 4-5 minutes. Combine with the roasted vegetables and toss. Serves 2 lazy but hungry people.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Nice bowl, what good taste in crockery you have! Wait a minute...