Couscous and Garbanzos renewed, yet again

I had intended to publish several posts in the next 2 weeks containing dishes with an Asian flair, as this is the time of Chinese New Year. But somewhere in the back of my mind was this nagging thought: I was forgetting something. There was something I meant to do. What was it?

Then it hit me: OMG! It's time for the Legume Love Affair, hosted by the talented Susan over at The Well Seasoned Cook! I knew I was going to enter this event, as I'm a great fan of legumes, both from a gardening as well as an eating perspective. Legumes add nitrogen to the soil and fiber and nutrients galore to the body. They are among the most perfect of all foods. But all of that would be meaningless unless they tasted good. Because when it comes to food, it seems that all the health claims in the world will always take second place to taste.

So I've pushed the "pause" button on my Chinese New Year theme in order to post something with legumes. I had intended to make a lentil and celery root salad for this event, but the celery root went to two different slaws instead. Stay tuned - they will be posted! But in the meantime, in order to dash in under the wire for this event, I've decided to drag out an old post of mine, which originally appeared last June. It was two posts, actually. The first one had osso bucco. This next one is the direction I took with the leftovers.
Ah, the osso bucco was delicious to the last bite. But that last bite was well before the end of the couscous and garbanzo mixture I made to go with it. And that lovely covered dish in the fridge just begged for a second chance. A new dress..........some new accessories............Well....you know what I mean. So I pulled it out, sat it on the counter and uncovered it for a while. We looked at each other, searching for a point of reference.

Perhaps it was the music I was listening to at that moment - Claudia Montes - a Spanish singer with a lyrical voice. I heard the Arabic influences in the music of Spain, and my mind wandered to that region of the world. Once there, it became obvious what my next step would be. I walked to Whole Foods and bought an eggplant, some tomato and a large yellow onion. Got home and fired up the grill. While it was heating up I peeled and sliced the eggplant, laid it out on a large dish and sprinkled some kosher salt on it. While the salt drew the juices out, I cut the onion in quarters, and sliced the tomatoes thickly. I then made an olive oil balsamic vinegar mixture and added a little ground black pepper and some more kosher salt. I patted the eggplant dry, poured the mixture over the veggies and headed out to the grill.

I find grilling veggies to be an exercise in focus. At least with my grill it is. It's an old grill and the flames aren't even -- one part gets a high flame and the rest is hit or miss. So I stand there, tongs in hand and spatula at the ready. I am constantly peering under the slices, watching them anxiously, waiting for that moment when they are toasty with those lovely grill lines across them, but not burnt. Flipping them over is a challenge, too, because I never know if they will slip through the grill and into the flame or actually land on the metal and stay there. I was lucky this time - only lost one tomato slice.

Headed in with my pile of grilled veggies. The couscous went into the micro, the cotes du rhone went into a glass, and when the grains were heated, I pulled them out, added the veggies, stirred, checked and corrected the seasonings and sat down to one of the best meals I had eaten in ages. I don't generally pat myself on the back in public, but folks, this one was a winner! Those grilled vegetables added a depth and complexity that even the osso bucco couldn't compete with. I lifted my glass and toasted the chef, and when I was done, I gave myself a standing ovation (much to my cat's disgust!)For health news, visit Mission Valley Acupuncture
For a place to share what natural remedies work for you and which don't, visit my other blog Second Opinion

Couscous and Garbanzos renewed

Ah, the osso bucco was delicious to the last bite. But that last bite was well before the end of the couscous and garbanzo mixture I made to go with it. And that lovely covered dish in the fridge just begged for a second chance. A new dress..........some new accessories............Well....you know what I mean. So I pulled it out, sat it on the counter and uncovered it for a while. We looked at each other, searching for a point of reference.

Perhaps it was the music I was listening to at that moment - Claudia Montes - a Spanish singer with a lyrical voice. I heard the Arabic influences in the music of Spain, and my mind wandered to that region of the world. Once there, it became obvious what my next step would be. I walked to Whole Foods and bought an eggplant, some tomato and a large yellow onion. Got home and fired up the grill. While it was heating up I peeled and sliced the eggplant, laid it out on a large dish and sprinkled some kosher salt on it. While the salt drew the juices out, I cut the onion in quarters, and sliced the tomatoes thickly. I then made an olive oil balsamic vinegar mixture and added a little ground black pepper and some more kosher salt. I patted the eggplant dry, poured the mixture over the veggies and headed out to the grill.

I find grilling veggies to be an exercise in focus. At least with my grill it is. It's an old grill and the flames aren't even -- one part gets a high flame and the rest is hit or miss. So I stand there, tongs in hand and spatula at the ready. I am constantly peering under the slices, watching them anxiously, waiting for that moment when they are toasty with those lovely grill lines across them, but not burnt. Flipping them over is a challenge, too, because I never know if they will slip through the grill and into the flame or actually land on the metal and stay there. I was lucky this time - only lost one tomato slice.

Headed in with my pile of grilled veggies. The couscous went into the micro, the cotes du rhone went into a glass, and when the grains were heated, I pulled them out, added the veggies, stirred, checked and corrected the seasonings and sat down to one of the best meals I had eaten in ages. I don't generally pat myself on the back in public, but folks, this one was a winner! Those grilled vegetables added a depth and complexity that even the osso bucco couldn't compete with. I lifted my glass and toasted the chef, and when I was done, I gave myself a standing ovation (much to my cat's disgust!)
For health news, visit Mission Valley Acupuncture
For a place to share what natural remedies work for you and which don't, visit my other blog Second Opinion

The Endless Osso Bucco

I had guests visiting for several days, and we all went to one of my favorite local restaurants, Arriverderci. This place has been busy ever since they opened in 1995, and I discovered them about 4 months after they opened, right after I got back from a trip to Italy. At that time there were 2 owners, Tony and Franco. Tony is Roman, and Franco is Sicilian. Perhaps this explains the breakup - I don't know. (I do know that it's a miracle that they ever unified Italy - on the map, at least!) At any rate, Franco left town and Tony now has expanded his empire to include at least 4 other restaurants, with 2 more on the way. His formula is simple: offer terrific food in generous portions at very reasonable prices. Who could complain?

One of my friends ordered the osso bucco, which came on a bed of risotto with porcini mushrooms. The huge portion which arrived was enough to feed the Turkish army! She ate to her heart's content, and brought home the leftovers. The next day we had a lunch of leftovers - I ate my leftover curry from Bombay (my favorite Indian restaurant), and she had her osso bucco. When we were done, she put the rest of it back in it's container, and we put it in the fridge.

Having indulged myself for a week on restaurant food, I was ready to get back to my kitchen. You know how sometimes an ingredient will come to you, and you start searching for ways of cooking it? Well, for me it was garbanzos this time. I wanted to create a vegetarian meal that was hearty. Garbanzos kept coming up as the way to go. Look in the pantry. Yep. Got 'em. Also had a little couscous. OK - that works. What else? Onions and garlic, of course. Need a little color here. How about some parsley? Yes, and I have it in the fridge, too. Well, I'm getting a direction going here - clearly I'm in Claudia Roden territory, so I look there. Nothing that really speaks to me, but mint seems to leap off a few pages, and I have it growing in the garden, so why not? And lemon juice shows up as well -- I've got one of those in the fridge, too.

So as you've probably guessed by now, I don't have amounts of ingredients to give. As usual, I started with garlic and onions. About 2 cloves minced and I probably had 3/4 of a yellow onion. While sauteeing them, I boiled water for the couscous, and heated the leftover osso bucco in the micro. (Still don't have a couscousiere.....sigh!) Pour the water over the couscous and cover and continue to sautee the onions and garlic until the onions are golden. Add some cumin and ground coriander and stir. Since I was using canned garbanzos, I drained them and put them into the pan with the sauteed vegetables and stirred until they were heated. Turn off heat. Fluff the couscous with a fork and add the sauteed ingredients. I have a habit of using my scissors and cutting the parsley directly into the dish. I'm guessing it was about a couple of tablespoons. I added the mint at this point as well, and the heated osso bucco slices.

Yes, I know I said vegetarian meal.......but I made enough to last past the osso bucco stage. Stay tuned for the next chapter.....

For health news, visit Mission Valley Acupuncture
For a place to share what natural medicines work for you and which don't, visit my other blog Second Opinion