Easy Moroccan Couscous
The University of Ottawa has crappy, crappy, crappy food. Unbelievably bad. It’s like WW2-era, desperately overpriced rations. Thank christ I couldn’t afford the meal plan in first year, else I might have contracted scurvy. Because you can be damn sure I wouldn’t buy a soft, crinkled apple for $1.70. Screw you, Chartwells, you’re not getting a cent of my money!
Where am I going with this? Oh yeah, I once reviewed the food court at Carleton University for a Fulcrum article. Holy crap was it ever good (but expensive). I remember the Moroccan-spiced couscous blew me away. (ALSO THE SOY MILK ON TAP!!!)
Most of the recipes for Moroccan couscous have an extensive list of ingredients. I’m at the point right now, financially, where I can’t spend $5 on tons of new ingredients. So although this recipe might not be crazy authentic, it is damn easy and you probably have most of the ingredients in your cupboard or fridge.
4 tbsp vegan margarine
3/4 cup chopped shallots
3 cups vegatarian stock
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 1/2 cups couscous
1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted
1/4 cup currants
3/4 cup shredded zucchini (optional; I just added this because I had it)
In large sauce pan, melt butter. Add the shallots and cook for 3 minutes over medium heat. Add stock, salt and pepper, raise the heat to high and bring the stock to a boil. Turn off the heat and add the couscous and zucchini; stir. Cover the pan and let it sit for 10 minutes. Add pine nuts and currants, and fluff with a fork
I served the couscous with (counter-clockwise from the couscous): sweet-potato soup, steamed vegetable dim-sum buns from Chinatown, naan for dipping in the soup (not vegan, for O.B.), and dipping sauce for the dim sum buns (1:3 hoisin:sweet-thai-chilli sauces). Perfect for a night in with Lost on DVD!
-Maureen
Aly
Maureen