Wednesday 17 April 2013

Refresher Course

Insalata di Couscous con i Caperi, Olive, Finocchio e Pomodorini
Couscous Salad with Capers, Olives, Fennel & Cherry Tomatoes


Well, this was also the single course of my meal this evening too, I will have to admit- but yes, as the title of this post implies, this was indeed a very refreshing course indeed! After a back-breaking 12 hours of work today, supper needed to be a very simple and speedy affair- and nothing is as quickly put together as a nice couscous dish! 

This took all of 10 minutes to make- which was absolutely fine by me! Just a little chopping, a literal "flash in the pan" and a few simple but yummy ingredients later, this was a great light snack which you might want to make as a light lunch, a side dish to a chicken or fish recipe or a light starter to a dinner menu. But in any case- it is a great dish to bear in mind for the warmer months ahead!



I started off by finely chopping 2 Spring onions and a good handful of fennel and popping them into my frying pan with a little oil. Whilst they were sizzling away, I poured just enough boiling water over my couscous to cover it, added salt, pepper, just a little crushed garlic and a little green Tabasco, stirred it through and let it sit and do its thing- I love that couscous requires no real cooking!

In the meantime the onions and fennel had begun to brown nicely and at that point I added some sliced olives, mixed green and black, and the zest of an orange. I seasoned with salt, pepper and a pinch of sugar and sautéed everything for 1-2 minutes, then added the couscous which was by now fluffed up but still a little moist. 

Once the couscous was in the pan, I added a good handful of both finely chopped mint and parsley and the juice of half an orange. Next came the sliced cherry tomatoes and the capers, a last drizzle of olive oil and a few plucked fennel greens for a little added freshness... and that was all it took! The combination of the flavors does all of the hard work for you in this dish... all you have to do is to put them together and enjoy! Buon apetito!

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