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Fun With Couscous!

 

Yes I said “fun with couscous”. Recently I discovered Israeli Couscous or Pearl Couscous. I had seen it in a recipe some time ago and had a hard time locating it so I gave up. Then I was in my favorite Italian grocery and came across it. It was also a BOGO so I bought it! Of course by now I couldn’t remember or find the recipe I originally wanted it for! But it didn’t matter, I was all about finding a new recipe or recipes. For those of you who say you don’t like couscous, this is a great variety to try. It’s much larger than normal couscous and had a wonderful silky texture. It’s not grainy like the regular variety.

First time I made it I served it cold! I had some leftover tomatoes and cucumbers and made a Mediterranean style cold salad with it. It was a huge hit! I served it at a barbecue at my house and people were asking for 2nd and 3rd helpings! So of course I’ve made it several times since!

Not to get into a rut with my new-found side dish I decided to make a hot side dish last week. This time it came out like a creamy cheesy risotto! OMG it was incredible! And it only took about 10 minutes to make! Did I mention this couscous only takes 8-10 minutes! No constant stirring, no long drawn out process, just a quick and easy side dish that you can add ANYTHING to. I’ve even added it to a soup instead of noodles! I am all about the couscous these days!!

It’s possibilities are endless! So today I am going to include both my cold recipe and my hot risotto style recipe. Enjoy and go buy some couscous!

Recipe #1:

Mediterranean Couscous Salad

1 cup uncooked Israeli/Pearl couscous

1 ¼ cup liquid (water, chicken broth, veggie broth, etc)

Chopped tomato, about ¼ cup(remove seeds and insides, gets too watery)

Chopped cucumber, about ½ cup

1 cloves garlic, minced (or you can use garlic powder)

¼ cup finely chopped red onion

t teaspoon dill (optional)

salt and pepper to taste

extra-virgin olive oil

Directions:

1: Boil liquid and add couscous. Cover and simmer 8-10 minutes. Watch it carefully so it doesn’t overflow. Stir occasionally.

2. When the liquid is all gone, drain and rinse well under cold water.

3. Add rest of ingredients, mix well and add a little olive oil (1-2 tablespoons). Mix again and chill.

4. When ready to serve place in serving bowl and drizzle a little more EVOO over the top and mix.

Makes 2-4 servings

Recipe #2

Couscous Risotto

*This recipe I used what I had leftover in the fridge to add to the couscous. I had made broccoli rabe the night before so I chopped it up and used that. You can also add chopped mushrooms or anything else you wish. Even change the cooking crème variety. Make it yours!

1 cup uncooked Israeli/Pearl couscous

1¼ cup liquid (water, broth, etc.)

leftover veggies, chopped well

Few tablespoons Savory Lemon & Herbs Cooking Creme (Philadelphia brand)

¼-½ grated parmesan cheese

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Boil liquid and add couscous. Cover and simmer 8-10 minutes. Stir occasionally.

2. When liquid is gone, keep heat on low and add the veggies, cooking crème and parmesan cheese. Stir well till heated through.

3. Serve immediately.

Makes 2-4 servings

Hot Won Ton Bites

Well this past week I decided to finally venture into the won ton appetizer realm. I have to say it was a huge success! These little wrappers are so cute! I made two different ones and the were both a huge hit. The main recipe I used was spinach and artichoke. I got the recipe originally from Kraft Foods and tweaked it. It called for red peppers. Everyone knows I don’t like sweet peppers so I used sun-dried tomato as well. If you want the original “Warm Spinach & Artichoke Cups” click and check it out. The second one I made was a sausage/cream cheese combo. I had two large Italian style chicken sausages and just ground them up and added cream cheese. HUGE HUGE HIT!

The won ton wrappers can be found in pretty much every supermarket. Look in your produce section by the Asian foods. The ones I used are the small square ones. Have fun with these because you can put just about anything into them and bake them! Experiment and have fun! I know I’m getting another package next time I go shopping! And make sure you have at least 2-3 mini muffin tins for these. You can use one but it will take longer.

INGREDIENTS:

24 won ton wrappers

(Spinach & Artichoke)

1 can (14 oz.) artichoke hearts, drained, finely chopped

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen chopped spinach, thawed, squeezed dry

1/3 cup light mayonnaise

1/3 cup light sour cream

1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese

¼ cup finely chopped sun-dried tomatoes

4 cloves garlic, minced (use less if it’s too much garlic for you!)

(Sausage)

2-3 large chicken sausage, Italian style, ground up (I used the food processor)

1 package (8 oz.) light cream cheese

DIRECTIONS:

1. Heat oven to 350º.  Place 1 won ton wrapper into each of 24 mini muffin cups sprayed with cooking spray. Make sure the edges of wrappers extend over the top of cup. Bake 5 minutes. Meanwhile combine the rest of the ingredients.

2. Once the 5 minutes is up remove from oven. Spoon the mixture into the cups.

3. Bake 12-15 minutes or until filling is heated through and edges of the cups are golden brown. They may need an extra minute or so depending on your oven. Just keep an eye on them. Enjoy!

Hearty Pork Soup

Hello all! I am back! It’s been awhile and I have so many recipes I need to get posted! I have no excuse really. I’m out of work again and should have no problem posting more often. But as we all know the plans we have in our heads don’t always mesh with reality. But here we go with a new recipe. I adapted it from a recipe on the Betty Crocker site. If you want the original check out Southwestern Pork Soup.

This soup came about because about a month or so ago I had bought this really inexpensive Boston Pork Butt Roast. It was a pretty big roast to begin with, I think 5 or 6 pounds. And with only two people in my house we had lots of leftovers. (I will post the recipe for that in the near future also) We ate the pork a couple of times the same week, then I decided to freeze the rest before it was lost forever. I think we got about 5 or 6 uses out of it! Well this week I decided I wanted to use up the rest of what I had in the freezer so I searched for any recipe with leftover pork. I would say 90% of the recipes I found were some kind of pulled pork. Not a fan. So I kept looking till I found the soup recipe. And voilà! I created my own version of a delicious hearty soup! I put kale in this soup also. That is another story! Let’s just say trying to make ‘kale chips’ didn’t work out so well and when you put leftover chips in a container, they don’t stay so crisp. So I just chopped them up and added to the soup. I was originally going to add spinach but the kale was there! It was perfect for the soup!

This recipe originally said it made 5 servings. My husband and I have had it twice this week so far, yes it’s only Tuesday! We had it as a meal for dinner and each had two bowls the first night. Second night we weren’t as hungry so only had one bowl each. There is at least another two bowls left! Yummmm…. It thickens up a little the second time around so if you like a little thinner soup, add more broth or water!

INGREDIENTS:

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 pound or so, of pork leftovers, cubed into bite size pieces

4 medium green onions, sliced

1 small jalapeño chili, seeded and finely chopped (I used the jar jalapeño)

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

¼ cup chopped red onion

4-6 cups reduced sodium, fat-free chicken broth (you can use vegetable broth too if you wish)

1 can (15-16 oz.) white beans (cannellini or great northern)

1 can (15-16 oz.) black beans

1 cup cooked brown rice

3-4 leaves of basil chopped/sliced

1 cup dried kale (you can use it fresh also)

1 tablespoon fresh thyme

1 tablespoon dried cilantro

DIRECTIONS:

  1. In a 3 quart nonstick saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add the pork and cook for 3-5 minutes until it starts getting a little browned, stirring occasionally.
  2. Add the onions, chili and garlic and stir well. Cook for a few minutes until the onion starts to become translucent.
  3. Add about 4 cups of the broth, beans, and kale. (I added another cup or so of the broth after I added other ingredients as it needed more liquid. It’s your choice) Heat to boiling and reduce heat. Cover and simmer about 10 minutes or so.
  4. Add the rice, basil, thyme and cilantro. Stir well and heat through. 

Cheesy Zucchini Soup

Last night I made a wonderful delicious soup for the first time. I want to thank fellow blogger Reeni for the inspiration. She posted the original recipe on her blog Cinnamon Spice & Everything Nice and I just had to make it myself. I did change it a bit because I didn’t have the exact ingredients on hand. It still came out incredibly delicious. I was sweating like crazy making this last night, it is Florida and still 80 degrees or so right now, but I kept at it. The recipe is pretty easy, but it does take time cutting up all the stuff. Oh how I wish I had a sous chef of my own to do all that for me!

The original recipe I had called for vegetable broth. I had chicken broth and beef broth. I used chicken broth. It also called for a carrot. Didn’t have any, so didn’t use it. The recipe also called for ¾ cup grated Parmesan cheese OR 1 cup of shredded cheddar, swiss or pepper jack. I couldn’t decide so I used ½ cup Parmesan cheese and ½ cup shredded cheddar! Same thing with the herbs. It originally called for 1 teaspoon dried thyme or basil. I used ½ teaspoon of each. And the one final change or should I say suggestion that I left out was adding ½ cup of half-and-half or heavy cream. The soup didn’t need it and I didn’t need the extra calories! I’d say the recipe makes about 6 nice servings. I had two bowls and my husband had three! There is even enough for another bowl left over! So it’s a keeper! Please check out the original recipe on Reeni’s blog at  Cinnamon Spice & Everything Nice! Mangia!

INGREDIENTS:

Olive Oil, about 3 tablespoons

1 large Vidalia or yellow onion, diced (I used Vidalia)

1 large carrot, diced

1 stalk celery, diced

4-6 cloves garlic, (I used at least 6

½ teaspoon dried basil

½ teaspoon dried thyme

salt and pepper to taste

2 large zucchini (I used 1 large and 2 small)

3 cups vegetable or chicken broth

½ cup grated Parmesan cheese

½ cup shredded cheddar, swiss, pepper jack or any other cheese of your choice

½ cup half-and-half or heavy cream, optional

DIRECTIONS:

  1. In a large saucepan heat the olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the onion, carrot and celery, sauté until tender, about 5-10 minutes. (I cooked it for 10 minutes) Stir often. Add the garlic and sauté until you smell its wonderful aroma.

  2. Add the thyme and basil. Season well with salt and pepper.

  3. Meanwhile peel and dice 1½ of the zucchini (I used 2½). It should be about 5 coups. Shred the rest of the zucchini on the large holes of a grater and set aside.

  4. Add the diced zucchini to the pan and mix well, cooking for about 3-4 minutes. Add the broth and bring to a simmer for 15 minutes.

  5. Turn off the heat and purée the soup using an immersion blender. Careful of hot splatters with this! If you don’t have one carefully transfer the soup in batches to a blender and purée in batches. Return to pan if you used this method.

  6. Once the soup is pureed add the shredded zucchini and the cheese. (You can add the half-and-half here if you wish) Stir well.

  7. Simmer for 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Makes 4-6 servings

Pumpkin Mac & Cheese

Today’s recipe I have Rachael Ray to thank for. I saw this recipe on her show just the other day and had to try it. I did change it a little bit from her recipe but not too drastic. If you want to check her original recipe go to her show site at Rachael Ray Show.

Just a warning also, this makes a huge amount of mac and cheese so make sure you have many hungry people to eat it! I’m sending leftovers with my husband to his office! I made this as a side dish to my Spicy Garlic Barbecued Ribs. It was a friend’s birthday and he loves the ribs so I had to make something else to go with it. I really wanted to make my Best Garlic Smashed Cauliflower, Ever! But alas he doesn’t really like cauliflower and I didn’t think I should try and trick him on his birthday.

This recipe came out really good. I had a huge serving and was stuffed! The fiber from the pumpkin and whole wheat pasta really fills you up! The house smelled so good while it was cooking also! I was trying to convince myself it really was fall outside so I needed “fall smells”. Florida Fall doesn’t really start till December so I had to improvise. I will also be eating this several more times for lunch this week! Oh well, I will have to suffer through!

"Before"

INGREDIENTS:

1 pound whole wheat or whole grain short-cut pasta. (I used rotelli)

4 tablespoons butter

3 slightly rounded tablespoons soy flour (Rachael uses regular flour)

1 cup amber beer

2 tablespoons agave nectar (Rachael uses honey or maple syrup)

2 cups half-and-half (Rachael uses whole milk)

½ teaspoon allspice (you can also use ground cloves)

1 teaspoon ground mustard

½-1 teaspoon cayenne pepper (my husband says I should use Sirracha)

Freshly grated nutmeg, to taste

salt and pepper to taste (I found it needed more salt)

1 can (14-15 ounce) pumpkin purée or 2 cups fresh pureed pumpkin (NOT PUMPKIN PIE MIX)

2½ cups shredded sharp yellow cheddar cheese

Paprika for sprinkling on top

"After"

DIRECTIONS:

  1. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Salt it and cook pasta to al dente. Drain and reserve. Preheat oven to broil.

  2. Melt the butter in a medium size saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in the flour and cook for 1 minute.

  3. Raise the heat a little and add the beer. Reduce until almost evaporated.

  4. Whisk in the agave nectar and half-and-half. Season with the allspice, mustard, cayenne and a little bit of freshly grated nutmeg. Add salt and pepper to taste.

  5. Thicken to coat a wooden spoon, just a couple more minutes. Taste to see if you need to adjust the seasonings.

  6. Whisk in the pumpkin and stir in about 2 cups of the grated cheese with a wooden spoon until melted.

  7. Add the sauce to the pasta in a large bowl. It’s easier to mix in a big bowl.

  8. Add to a casserole dish or individual ramekins. (I used a casserole dish). Dust with a little paprika.

  9. Broil to brown and bubbly! Serve!

Serves 4-6

Buttery Garlic Parmesan Chicken Wings

I think just about everyone loves chicken wings. But after a while they can get a little boring. Same thing all the time…We have a favorite wings place here in Florida called Hurricane Wings. (They’re on Long Island in NY now too!) They have lots of different flavors along with the usual hot stuff. So the other night I remembered I had a bag of frozen wings and wanted to make up a batch. Well as most of you know, I love garlic. Can never have too much if you ask me. I also love butter and parmesan cheese. So why not combine them all with the chicken wings! Wonderful idea. What I liked most about this is that I didn’t have to defrost the wings first. I just followed the directions on the bag. Baked them for 45 minutes at 400ºF. My oven also has a convection option so I used the convection roast setting. I also turned them over a couple of times during the cooking. We love crispy wings and if you do them this way you won’t have all the extra fat from deep-frying. I am happy to say they came out awesome! We also served them with the usual blue cheese dressing. I also didn’t have any celery so I cut a cucumber into long slices and that worked just fine.

I’m thinking of making up another batch for tonight! 

INGREDIENTS:

2-4 lbs. uncooked chicken wings (frozen or unfrozen)

6-8 cloves garlic minced (cut back if you don’t like a lot of garlic)

6-8 tablespoons butter, melted

½ cup of grated parmesan cheese of choice

½ teaspoon each dried basil and oregano

DIRECTIONS:

  1. Follow cooking directions on bag of chicken. Different cooking times for frozen or thawed. Place the chicken wings on a cookie sheet or roasting pan and cook as directed. This will take 30-45 minutes.

  2. Meanwhile in a medium bowl combine the melted butter, garlic, basil and oregano. Add ¼ cup of the parmesan cheese. Mix well.

  3. When the wings are done to your liking, we like them crispy, remove from cookie sheet and put them in a large bowl. Add the butter, garlic mixture to the wings and mix well.

  4. Put the wings back onto the cookie sheet, making sure you get all the mixture on them. Sprinkle with the remaining ¼ cup of parmesan cheese.

  5. Broil for about 5 minutes about 3-4 inches from the broiler element. Keep an eye on them so the cheese doesn’t burn.

  6. Remove from oven and transfer to a platter and dig in!

Asian Style Quinoa

Once again I am looking for things to add to my yummy quinoa dishes. That is one of the great things about quinoa. It’s so versatile! Love it!! Anyway, I was making my Asian style pork chops for dinner and decided to have quinoa with it. So I came up with this quick and easy dish to go with it. This recipe used the plain white quinoa, only because I was out of the colorful ones. Use whichever you wish. I’m finding more and more recipes with quinoa and it’s getting easier to find in the regular supermarket which is fantastic! I still like to get mine from Whole Foods (when I take the trek there) because I can get it in bulk. Much better for me. Just look for it in your local grocery store with the rice and you’ll be happy you did!

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup quinoa, rinsed and drained

2 cups fat-free low-sodium chicken broth (gives it a better flavor)

3 scallions sliced, green and white parts

4-5 cloves garlic minced

1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger (it really does make a difference)

1 tablespoon soy sauce*

DIRECTIONS:

1. Place the chicken broth and quinoa in a medium pot.

2. Bring the broth to a boil, lower to simmer, covered. Cook for 15-20 minutes, until all liquid is absorbed.

3. When quinoa is done keep stove on low but add in the garlic, ginger and soy sauce. Mix well. Add the scallions and serve.

*If you want more soy sauce just add it. This is a conservative amount but feel free to add more.

Makes about 4 servings

Best Garlic Smashed Cauliflower, Ever!

So I have been totally slacking in my blogging duties. I apologize. I have many recipes to add and I’m going to start with this one. I love mashed potatoes. My favorite veggie of all time. But what I don’t love is the calories that go with it. For a while I have seen a few recipes from different sources that combine a potato and cauliflower. I know I’ve posted a recipe for my smashed cauliflower before but this one blows it away! I’m not kidding. The majority of the recipe is cauliflower which is low-calorie and good for you. But you will swear there is no cauliflower in this when you taste it. OMG! Oh and it has a bunch of garlic in it too! I made this last night as a side for our pork chops. I was so excited that I forgot to take a picture of it before we demolished it. The recipe makes 4 servings and the picture I have here is what was left. Needless to say I will most definitely be making this again, soon! One of the recipes I found used buttermilk but I didn’t have any so I used fat-free half-and-half. You can definitely use buttermilk or regular half-and-half, whatever you wish. But the great thing about this is that there is about 100 calories per serving! I know! So without further ado here is the recipe I came up with.

(See I told you there wasn’t much left!)

INGREDIENTS:

1 large potato, peeled and cut into small cubes

4 cups cauliflower florets, washed (a small head is probably fine)

¼ cup milk of your choice (buttermilk, half-and-half, regular milk…)

2 tablespoons butter substitute (I use I Can’t Believe it’s Not Butter, light)

 6 cloves garlic, peeled

salt and pepper to taste (I did find that it does need salt so you may even want to add some to the water)

DIRECTIONS:

  1. Place the cauliflower, potato and garlic into a pot large enough to hold it all. Cover with water and bring to a boil.
  2. When it boils, lower the heat to a simmer and continue cooking for about 15-20 minutes. Making sure the cauliflower is very tender and soft.
  3. Drain and return to pot. Add the milk and butter. 
  4. Using a hand mixer or potato masher, mash till smooth! Add salt and pepper as needed.

Serve and be ready to be amazed! Makes 4 servings or 2 very large ones! 

Tomato, Cucumber & White Bean Salad

Finding dishes that I can put together quickly is becoming more of a habit these days. Between work and chores around the house I am always looking for fast, healthy dishes. For the past holiday weekend I didn’t have a ‘salad’  to serve with our meal. I was tired of the same old lettuce salads. So I looked in my refrigerator. I found a cucumber that had about a third left on it. I also had a few Campari tomatoes that were very ripe and wouldn’t last much longer. So I chopped them up and mixed with some garlic. Then I thought it needed something else because it really wasn’t enough for 4-6 people who would be dining with us. So I threw in a can of white cannellini beans. Yum! I also added some white balsamic vinegar and olive oil and mixed it up. Delicious and it was a huge hit! Fast and good for us!

 

INGREDIENTS:

3-4 Campari tomatoes (or whatever you have on hand), cut into bite size pieces

1/3 cucumber, peeled and cut into pieces

1 clove garlic chopped

1 teaspoon dried basil

1 can white cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

white balsamic vinegar, about 1/8 cup

olive oil, about ¼ cup

DIRECTIONS:

Mix all ingredients together and chill to serving time!

Broccoli Slaw with a Twist

Here it is another July 4th and of course most people will be having the usual mayo-laden salads. Don’t get me wrong, I love those salads. If I could eat potato salad every day I would! But I have to be more conscious of things these days if I want to lose any weight. So I came up with this light and crunchy slaw. The twist in this slaw is jicama. I know many of you do know what jicama is but I’m sure there are many who don’t. Let alone know how to pronounce it! The ‘j’ is pronounced like an ‘h’. But no matter how you say it you may be pleasantly surprised by it. Jicama is sometimes called a Mexican turnip. It’s composed mostly of water so it’s also very low in calories! Bonus!! The taste is hard to describe. It’s crunchy with the texture of a potato or apple but sort of sweet and sort of earthy. Usually it’s found in salads. You can also fry it up like french fries! For this recipe I shredded it but you can also julienne it. It’s great with dip too. They are usually the size of a large grapefruit and can weigh a couple of pounds. Just peel the outside skin and slice it up! Try it!!

Well I made this originally for a side to go with our rib dinner this weekend. I made it the night before which is advised so that the flavors can blend. It’s not a heavy mayo slaw either. I brought it over to a friend’s house tonight because we did have leftovers. This recipe makes quite a bit so share it! And I have to say even though my husband and I loved it we knew it was a hit when our friend Brad loved it! Then again, there isn’t much food that Brad doesn’t like! But really, he gave his thumbs up approval so we know we have a hit! Thanks Brad!

I know there are many recipes out there that use jicama in a broccoli slaw but mine also has a slight Italian flavor to it. I used the new Breakstone’s Zesty Blends sour cream. They come in three flavors and I used the Roasted Garlic and Herb. Delicious! It’s great as a dip just as it is too! Great for dipping that extra jicama in!

INGREDIENTS:

½ cup light mayonnaise

½ cup Breakstone’s Zesty Blends “Roasted Garlic and Herb”

1 package broccoli slaw

2 large scallions chopped

½ of a large jicama, peeled, shredded or julienned

2 teaspoons white balsamic vinegar

DIRECTIONS:

1. Mix mayonnaise, sour cream, scallions and vinegar in a large bowl. Add the slaw and jicama and mix well.

This is best if it is made the night before or several hours before using.

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