Parmesan Couscous with Roasted Garlic, Toasted Pine Nuts and Caramelized Onions

So The Hubs sends me an email last week telling me that we've been invited to dinner with some friends, and can I make a salad. This was about 3, just before I was about to start making the dinner I had planned. Generally, The Hubs is better about checking with me first, but it turns out it was our friend's birthday, so I was happy to punt.

Since I didn't have any unaccounted for produce, I decided to make this side I found, of course, on Pinterest. I was super easy and quick to make and best of all, I had everything I needed on hand. Pine nuts are crazy expensive these days, so you can always substitute another nut to keep costs down.

Parmesan Couscous with Roasted Garlic, Toasted Pine Nuts and Caramelized Onions

Ingredients:

• 1 box of plain couscous (about 6 oz)
• 1-2 tbsp toasted pine nuts 
• 1 tsp olive oil 1/4 yellow sweet onion, diced 
• 3-5 cloves of roasted garlic, chopped  
• 1-2 tbsp shredded Parmesan cheese 
• 1 tbsp Italian parsley, chopped 

Instructions:

1. Prepare couscous per instructions.

2. In dry skillet, add pine nuts and cook until lightly golden brown, about 2 minutes (stirring frequently). 

In addition to sight, you can also tell when nuts are roasted because they'll be quite fragrant!

3. Remove from heat. In same skillet, add oil, once hot, add onions and cook until caramelized & tender. I had raw garlic, so I threw that in at the same time.

4. Once the couscous is done, stir in the onions, pine nuts, roasted garlic, cheese and parsley. Enjoy.

Indonesian Pilaf

Sometime I'll have to make a post about how I organize my recipes, both online and at home. I started tearing recipes out of magazines long before I started cooking them, and this recipe for Indonesians Pilaf came from Real Simple a few years ago.

For a long time, I kept skipping over this one because I thought I had to buy the Kashi packet. Finally I read the fine print and realized I could use any grain I wanted. Dutch cuisine includes a lot of Indonesian foods, given the whole Dutch occupation thing. Politics aside, it sounded yummy and I loved all the colors.

Indonesian Pilaf

adapted from Kashi.com

*notes*

I halved the original recipe because it seems like a massive amount for the 2.5 of us. Both of the adults had two bowls (!) and we still had two generous servings for the hubs to take to work for lunch.

Also, we don't necessarily buy labeled organic produce, but we do buy from a great local grocery store/farmer's market-y type place.

Ingredients:

• 1 packet of Kashi™ 7 Whole Grain Pilaf (I used 2 cups dry couscous--4 cups when cooked)
• 1/2 cup whole peanuts
• 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
• 1-1/2 cloves organic garlic, sliced
• 1/2 medium organic red onion, diced
• 1/4 teaspoon cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon coriander
• 1/2 cup organic raisins
• 1 small organic carrot, cut into match sticks (1 diced mine)
• 1/2 cup organic red cabbage, diced (buy the smallest one you can find, because you'll have a ton left over. The hubs helpfully pointed out that in Holland you can get this pre-shredded in small amounts).
• 1 pinch salt
• 1/8 cup water
• 1/2 organic red bell pepper, seeded and diced
• 1/4 bunch cilantro, coarsely chopped (I used a couple teaspoons dried)
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoons brown rice vinegar (I used white rice vinegar, because that's what I had)
• 1 teaspoons fresh ginger root, grated (I used ground ginger)
• 1/2 teaspoons crushed red chili flakes
• 1 teaspoons evaporated cane juice crystals (I used raw sugar)

Instructions:

• Cook Kashi Pilaf (or couscous, or quinoa, or rice) according to directions on the package and set aside.

• Dry toast peanuts in a small skillet until golden brown and set aside.

• Sauté garlic and onion in first 2 teaspoons of sesame oil in a large skillet until limp.

The food processor went a little nuts with the red onion.

• Add cumin, coriander and stir.

I love my cute little steel bowls from Ikea.

• Add raisins, carrots, cabbage, salt, water and stir well.

• Cover with lid, reduce heat to low, simmer for 3 minutes then remove from heat.


• In a large mixing bowl, combine sauté mixture with cooked Kashi Pilaf, red bell pepper, cilantro, toasted peanuts and mix well.

• In a small bowl, combine remaining ingredients, whisk together, add to pilaf mixture, stir well and enjoy.

Nutrition Facts:

Serving Size: 2/3 cup

Calories: 180

Suzy's Mashed Red Potatoes

I admit it. I'm kind of a potato snob. I grew up on red potatoes fresh from our garden. And who wouldn't potatoes that don't have to be peeled. Since the hubs' homeland is a wee fond of potato-based meals, we eat a fair share of red potatoes.

As part of operation "make hubs happy," I made my first ever mashed potatoes to go with his chicken fried steak. I've never made them before because they seemed like something that would be time intensive and maybe tricky. I didn't have to worry. They turned out wonderfully. In the future, I might reduce the milk and butter, as it was a little more liquidy than I prefer, but the taste was perfection.

Suzy's Mashed Red Potatoes

Prep Time: 10 Minutes
Cook Time: 20 Minutes
Ready In: 30 Minutes
Servings: 8

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds small red potatoes, quartered
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add potatoes, and cook until tender but still firm, about 10 minutes.

I chopped my potatoes a little smaller than quarters so they would cook better.

The potatoes are done when a fork can easily slide through a single piece.

• Drain, and place in a large bowl.



• Combine potatoes with butter, milk, sour cream, salt, and pepper.

I would play with the amount of liquid...and maybe substitute garlic salt.
We LOVE garlic!


• Mash together until smooth and creamy.

Nutrition Information
Servings: 8
Calories: 214