The Art of Eating In - Cathy Erway [92]
In a saucepan, heat the olive oil with garlic. Add the spices and tomatoes and cook about 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tomatoes have broken down and reduced to a thick sauce. Add the slivered peppers and stir for another 2-3 minutes. Serve immediately.
Minty Moroccan Couscous Salad with Mint and Ghee
With vegetables, protein, and grains, this salad makes a great summer meal and travels well to potlucks and parties. The classic North African ingredients—oliues, almonds, and raisins—add a warm complement to the fresh tomatoes, but the mint clarified butter (ghee) is the real secret to the dish’s tastiness.
(SERVES 4-6)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
½ large red onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon each coriander and cumin seeds, toasted and crushed in a spice grinder (or use ground powders)
2 teaspoons turmeric
1 teaspoon paprika
1-2 teaspoons salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
2 cups uncooked couscous
1 cup vegetable stock or water
2 cups grape tomatoes, halved
½ cup raisins
½ cup roasted almonds, roughly chopped
1 cup pitted black Greek olives, roughly chopped
1½ cups chickpeas, soaked and fully cooked, or if canned, rinsed and drained
Juice and zest of 1 lemon
1 stick butter
4-5 tablespoons fresh mint leaves, finely chopped
In a large, heavy pot, heat the olive oil. Add about one-third of the chopped onions, the garlic, all the spices, and the salt and pepper, and stir over medium-low heat for 4-5 minutes, until the onions are soft. Add the couscous and stir to coat evenly. In a separate pan, bring the vegetable stock or water to a boil. Pour over the couscous, stir thoroughly, and cover the pot. Let sit for 5 minutes.
Fluff couscous and stir in the rest of the ingredients except for the butter and mint leaves.
In a small saucepan, slowly melt the butter. Remove from heat, and with a regular spoon skim off all the solid white milk fat that has separated to the top (it’s okay if a tiny bit remains in the pot). Add the chopped mint leaves and let sit for at least 10 minutes. Drizzle the clarified mint butter over the couscous and stir thoroughly. It’s best to let the couscous sit for at least one hourbefore serving, to let the flavors blend. Serve at room temperature.
CHAPTER 10
New Lows
THE SEARCH FOR THE PERFECT DATE MEAL
The way to a woman’s heart is through the door of an expensive restaurant.
-Conventional wisdom/Refrigerator magnets/Coffee mugs
My first few weeks living in my new apartment, I spent most nights cooking boring, repetitive, and humble foods for myself. It was pleasant, if a little lonely. I didn’t have to worry about another person around to disagree with whatever I felt like making. I didn’t have another set of eyes in the apartment to watch me if I was frantically clanging and grabbing things around the kitchen, avoiding the splash of oil and dropping spatulas, or cursing because I forgot to add something to the pot. In fact, I didn’t do much of anything frantically while cooking anymore. Who cared how prompt or good dinner was, when there was only myself to please? It turns out I was my own best personal chef. I’d spend a languid half hour stirring risotto, listening to the radio or records, watching everything going on in the pot. Somehow, everything I cooked in those first few weeks came out seamlessly, too, delicious even if simple.
On the phone one day, it suddenly occurred to my mother that I couldn’t go to restaurants for dates.
“How are you going to date?” she exclaimed in between huge, incredulous cackles. “No one is going to be able to take you out!”
“Whatever,” I said, rolling my eyes. My friends were supercool and creative, I tried to explain to her. And we don’t care about institutions like the nice, civil restaurant date. I think this scared her for