Experimenting in the Kitchen: Shrimp Couscous

Couscous has been one of those things that I pass in the grocery store and always think "I should really make some couscous". This may explain why I had 3 boxes of it in my cupboards. So, I finally bit the bullet on my couscous virgin cooking and tried another kitchen experiment.

Ingredients (see comments about what I would change below)

2 cups couscous
2 cups chicken soup broth
peppers (red, yellow, green) - approximately 1/3 of each
6 cremini mushrooms (medium-large size)
garlic, chopped
2 shallots
1 cup of artichokes
1/2 cup of parsley, chopped
pinch saffron
zest from one small lemon
juice from one small lemon
approximately 25 large raw shrimp
approx 1 tbsp of olive oil

Directions

Approximately 30 minutes before cooking couscous, add saffron to chicken soup broth.



Heat olive oil in frying pan. Add onion and garlic and let heat up for one minute. Add in mushroom, peppers. After a couple of minutes, add in shrimp. Let sauté for 5 minutes (may want to adjust this time if you like your veggies softer).



Add artichoke, lemon zest and juice, and parsley. Let cook for another minute or two.







When the shrimp and veggie mixture is ready, add the boiling soup broth to the couscous. It is pretty much ready instantly. Just fluff it up with a fork.



Add the couscous the the mixture and stir it up for the final product.



Verdict: It was not bad. Chicken soup broth is much better for couscous than plain water. I probably would not include artichokes again. They don't do much for the flavour or texture. I also forgot to let the saffron sit in the broth for a while. So, you'll notice that my couscous looks pretty unaffected by the saffron.

All in all - maybe a 7/10. I don't know if I'm ever going to LOVE couscous.

Ukrainian Style Sweet & Sour Meatballs

I've been making this recipe for what feels like forever. For appetizers I make smaller meatballs than for main course. It's just one of those recipes that's totally impossible to mess up. It's also a fantastic make-ahead when you know there's a party coming. I'll often make a HUGE batch of them and freeze them in different size containers (i.e. one party size, several family size and several individual portion sizes). On party day, I just take them out of the freezer, throw them into the slow cooker, turn on low for 8 hours and when it's time for the party, they're ready.

Sauce:
1 cup water
1 cup ketchup
1 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/4 cup vinegar
1/2 cup brown sugar
few grains cayenne powder
few grains garlic powder
1 tbsp. cornstarch

Meatballs:
1 1/2 lb. ground beef or ground turkey
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1 egg
1/4 cup milk
salt & pepper to taste

Combine water, ketchup, salt, Worcestershire sauce, vinegar, sugar, cayenne, cornstarch and garlic powder in top of double boiler; heat to boiling and cook until well blended.
Combine ground beef or turkey, bread crumbs, egg, milk, salt and pepper and shape into meatballs. Fry or bake in 400 F oven for 10-15 minutes. Put meatballs and sauce into a baking dish and bake in 350 F oven for 30 minutes.
Serve with rice and a salad or vegetable of your choice. I used brown rice as a side and loved the crunchiness of it.

Rosemary Roast Chicken

I seem to always gravitate to this tried and true recipe when I really want to do something else. Roast chicken is a 10 minute prep job that frees you to play around with things that are a little fussier and demand more of your attention. Today I'm trying to perfect sticky cinnamon buns - stay tuned to see if I succeed.
I tend to load this fowl with fresh rosemary and thyme but if you don't like rosemary, just substitute for thyme.

Ingredients:
1 roasting chicken
1/2 large lemon - poke holes in the lemon with your fork
4-5 cloves fresh garlic - poke the garlic with your fork
5-6 sprigs rosemary
3-4 springs thyme
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
2 Tbsp. butter

Method:

1. Prepare small roasting pan - I like to spray it and keep some water on the bottom.
2. Mix salt and pepper together and rub on fowl inside cavity and all around
3. Fill cavity with lemon, garlic (some people like to add onion also), rosemary, thyme
4. Take softened butter and rub on the skin of the fowl
5. Place bird in roasting pan - try to elevate from bottom of pan either with a grate or roasting vegetables and place bird on top.
6. Set oven temperature to 400 F.
7. Roast uncovered. I like to turn the bird half way through cooking so that both sides are evenly baked.
8. To check for doneness check where the leg connects to the thigh - if the juices are coming out pink - it's not ready - they should be clear
9. When chicken comes out of the oven tent with tin foil for 15 minutes - 1/2 hr before slicing (the meat is juicier that way)

Note: It's a good idea to check the chicken - 400 is a pretty high temperature and all ovens are different. If it looks like your chicken is browning too fast, turn your temp down to 350 to finish.
If the chicken legs are getting too brown - just cover them with pieces of foil.


Gravy:
The gravy from this chicken is very tasty - the fresh herbs are fabulous.
When the chicken is done put the juices through a colander to get a clear juice. Return to stove and add salt, pepper and bring to a simmer. Mix heaping tablespoon of cornstarch with cold water and mix - then add to your pan juices.