Cous Cous Salad

 

Cous Cous Salad

I really started this little project in December 2012 around Christmas. So the first posts will be two recipes from last month: a Cous Cous Salad and a Cheesecake.

I haven't decided on January's recipes but I have some packages of cream cheese lurking in the old cold box, so I am seriously considering a cream cheese pound cake. This is a lovely lemon-limey cake that goes very well with ice cream. I haven't made one in literally years. And I recently got myself a copy of Marcus Samuelsson's cookbook- there are a couple of things in there that I wanted to try. Possibilities.

But first the Cous-Cous Salad...and Cheese Cake!

Cous Cous Salad

Ingredients

Salad

ð       1 box of cous cous- roasted garlic flavour

ð       Feta chese

ð       ½ to ¼ red onion, diced small (depending on taste, preference and pungency of the onion)

ð       1 can of channa

ð       1 cucumber, diced fine

ð       1 tomato, de-seeded and diced (optional)

ð       ½ - ¼ cup of raisins

ð       ½ - ¼ cup of dry roasted nuts, unseasoned

ð       ½ red sweet pepper, diced small (optional)

ð       ½ yellow sweet pepper, diced small (optional)

ð       ½ green sweet pepper, diced small (optional)

ð       Fresh thyme, chopped fine

  Fresh marjoram, chopped fine   
(these fresh seasonings should be about 1 - 2 tbsp in total)

ð       Fresh parsley, chopped fine                       

ð       3 – 4 blades fresh chives (seasoning), chopped fine

Citrus Vinaigrette

ð       ¼ cup olive oil

ð       1/3 – ½ cup lemon juice (or lime juice)

ð       ½ teaspoon of mustard powder (or prepared mustard)

ð       ¼ tsp garlic powder

ð       Salt (to taste)

ð       Pepper (to taste)

Method

Prepare Channa

1.   Roast channa over a medium heat. Season well- curry, a clove of garlic, a dash of onion powder, salt and pepper to taste.  This can be done the ahead of time. Set aside cooked channa or refrigerate overnight.

Prepare Vinaigrette Dressing

2.   Prepare the dressing by whisking lemon (or lime) into olive oil. Add mustard, and garlic powder and salt and pepper to taste and whisk well. This can also be prepared by mixing all ingredients in a blender on medium to high speed.

Prepare Salad

3.   Prepare cous cous according to package directions.

4.   Toss together the prepared cous cous, cooked channa, red onion, cucumber, tomato, sweet peppers, nuts, and fresh seasonings (thyme, marjoram, parsley and chives). Mix well.

5.   Add as much of the dressing as you wish. The tartness from the lemon/lime should be prominent but not overpowering. Sprinkle in some more lemon/lime juice if you find you prefer tartness. If the dressing has been sitting for a while and begins to separate, re-whisk before adding to salad.

6.   This salad can be served warm or chilled, on a bed of lettuce.

NB: for most of the ingredients you can vary the amounts to get the right proportions. Add less or more depending on your tastes. The key ingredients are the cous cous, feta cheese, red onion, channa, cucumber, parsley and vinaigrette. You can omit ingredients that are out of season or pricey, or substitute these with something else.

Welcome!

Hi!

This is the first post in what I hope will be at least a year long project. I enjoy baking and cooking but lately (i.e. in the last five, ten years) I don't spend as much time in the kitchen as I would like. Hence my 2013 New Year's resolution: try a new (or old, familiar) recipe twice a month.

I am not quite a "foodie". Just a home cook with a definite preference for baking. However I don't find "gourmet" intimidating. I don't consider much of anything in a kitchen intimidating, unless it involves claws. So there may be a few things thrown in that you won't find on the regular dinner table. I will be aiming to try dishes from different cultures, dishes that I have always wanted to make and recipes that I have collected over the years but never attempted. I will also try to share some Barbadian and Caribbean dishes for those out there who aren't from this part of the world.

I will link this excursion in the food world with one of my other favourite pasttimes: photography. Hopefully it will allow me to expand my photographic range. I prefer landscape photography, a little abstract here and there. But food photography looks like it could be interesting. My goal will be to improve that as time goes by.

This is my first attempt at creating and maintaining a blog. It is really a way to keep me sticking to that resolution. But since I will share the recipes and whatever tips and ideas I have picked up along the way, I also hope that someone else will enjoy it and even find it useful.
 
Best,

Gayle