cous cous – #ThisGirlEats

Serves: 2
How much does it cost? This cost me less than £1.50 per person.
What are the benefits? Cous cous is a good source of plant-based protein making this recipe completely vegetarian-friendly, and it provides at least one of your five a day.

Halloumi is deeeeee-licious, but it’s such a distinct taste and texture that you can’t just throw it into any old thing and expect it to work. It needs a bit of thought, this one.

But, accompanied with sweet, charred roasted red peppers, gently spiced cous cous and mellow salad leaves, halloumi is the perfect ingredient.

This salad is really easy to make, with most aspects of the dish taking just minutes to put together. It’s healthy too, bursting with colour, flavour and nutrition – enough of everything to keep you satisfied!

I managed to get the ingredients together for this one for around £1.48 per person (damn, halloumi can be kind of expensive…). It’s a quick, simple veggie meal, full of leafy greens and gorgeous colours – what more could you want?!

INGREDIENTS
Block of Halloumi Cheese, Sliced
1 Red Bell Pepper
Bag of Prepared Salad Leaves
1 Packet of Flavoured Cous Cous

SEASONING
I didn’t really add too much to this recipe, because I think the flavours really burst on their own. I seasoned the bell pepper with salt and ground black pepper before roasting, but that’s about it!

So, this is how I did it…

1. Heat the oven to around 220°C – you want it hot, hot, hot – and add the pepper, cut into quarters with stalk and seeds removed, to a tray, skin-side up. Coat with cooking spray and roast for 25 minutes.

2. Remove from the oven, swap over to the grill and slide the slices of halloumi underneath, grilling for 2-3 minutes each side (or until the cheese is a gorgeous golden brown).

3. While the halloumi grills, add some boiling water to your cous cous and cook according to packet instructions (usually only a couple of minutes).

4. Your salad leaves can go straight from the packet into a bowl, topped with the charred roasted red peppers, gooey halloumi cheese and tasty cous cous. Enjoy!

Serves: 2
How much does it cost? This recipe cost me £2.75 per person.
What are the benefits? These kebabs are high in protein, count towards at least one of your five a day, and makes a great takeaway alternative to the usual late night, post-booze kebabs.

It’s not summer yet, but a girl can dream, right? 🔆 I mean, how else are we going to get through these dismal winter months…

With that in mind, I’ve cooked up something that transported me to a summer BBQ, fruit cider in one hand and chicken drumstick in the other, even though I was actually huddled up on the sofa shivering into my woolly socks.

It’s tasty without being too heavy, which is probably a good thing as we spend most of January grazing just to get ourselves through the post-Christmas blues.

Although lamb can be a little fatty, this recipe is still great for you in so many ways. It still packs in protein, veggies and nutrition while skipping over my usual “danger zones” – i.e. covering everything in cheese.

Mmm, cheese… 🧀

Anyway, this recipe makes six lamb kebab skewers so, depending on your appetite, this serves 2-3 people. I made mine for two with succulent kebab meat, plus a hefty dose of flavoursome cous cous, plus some tortilla crisps to crunch – a gorgeous plate full of different textures, colours and flavours.

INGREDIENTS
400g Diced Lamb
1 Courgette, Chopped
1 Red Onion, Chopped
Pack of Vegetable Cous Cous
2 Wholemeal Tortillas

SEASONING
For the kebab skewers, I added dried garlic, rosemary, salt, pepper and a drop of olive oil to the bowl and rubbed everything together in the bowl, before adding a dash of hot sauce too. For the tortillas, allow a drop of olive oil onto a piece of kitchen paper, rub all over the tortilla and then sprinkle over dried garlic flakes and dried coriander.

So, this is how I did it…

1. In a bowl, toss the crunchy veg and tender lamb together with a splash oil and seasoning. Make sure it’s all coated – but not too greasy!

2. Assemble the skewers – chunk of lamb, slice of courgette, bite of red onion – and place under the grill on a fairly high heat for approximately 10 – 12 minutes.

3. While the kebabs are cooking, prepare the cous cous. Yes, I’m being lazy and using pre-packed cous cous – don’t judge me! I’m grilling lamb over here and I’ve gotta keep an eye on it, I haven’t got time to be making roasted vegetable cous cous from scratch! Simply empty the packet into a bowl, add boiling water, stir with a fork and serve when ready.

4. When the lamb kebabs are cooked through, remove from directly underneath the grill and keep warm (don’t worry, it’s only for a couple of minutes).

5. It’s time for the tortillas, which should be rubbed with a teeny tiny drop of oil and sprinkled with seasoning. Grill for just a minute or two on each side until they crisp up – these cook super quick, so be careful!

6. Serve the lamb kebab skewers along with the warmed cous cous and the crispy tortillas and BAM! Done.

Tag: cous cous

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