Couscous with Spinach and Feta

This recipe is such an old favorite, I can't believe I haven't' shared it with you before. The ingredient list is a little lengthy, but every ingredient is worth it, and it really doesn't take that long to prepare, unless you're cooking the meat while you make dinner. I usually use some leftover meat - just about anything will do. The original recipe called for chicken, but I love it with leftover lamb, beef, or even venison.

Couscous with Spinach and Feta

Ingredients:

• 8-12 ounces beef, chicken, or lamb, cooked
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 cup gluten-free couscous (I use this. If you're not gluten-free, regular or Israeli couscous would be good too)
• 1 shallot, minced
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• Zest of one lemon, plus the juice
• Pinch red pepper flakes
• 6-8 ounces baby spinach
• 2 ounces feta cheese, crumbled

In a medium pot, saute the shallot in the olive oil until it begins to soften. Toss in the garlic, half the lemon zest, and red pepper flakes, and saute until the garlic becomes fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the couscous and toast for about one minute. Add 1 cup water (or the amount recommended on the package), and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to the lowest setting, cover, and let sit about 15 minutes, or until the couscous is cooked.

When the couscous is cooked, stir in the spinach, a handful at a time, until it is all wilted. Remove the pan from heat, and stir in the meat and half the feta cheese.

Divide between two plates. Top with the remaining feta cheese and drizzle with the remaining lemon zest and lemon juice.

Makes two generous or three modest portions. Can easily be doubled (or tripled) to serve more people. Keeps well one or two days in the fridge.

Yesterday, and Today

I hope your had a wonderful New Year. Our big celebration was last weekend, so last night we took it easy. I made a decadent salad with spinach, beef braised in red wine, and bacon. It was dressed with a red wine reduction made from the braising juices, and some cheese. We also had more pie. Then we sat on the couch with some wine and watched a movie, and were asleep before 10.

This morning, we brewed gluten-free beer for the first time. It was a bit like making soap or canning vegetables. Lots of steps, precision, and sterilization of equipment required.

We didn't have a pot big enough for all the wort, so we split things between two as best we could. Hopefully it turns out alright, but it will be a while before we know.

Tonight, we'll have Hoppin' John for good luck. This year, I tried to grow blackeyed peas in my garden, but Odie tore them out of the ground before they could even get going. No matter - I scored some dried ones from my Dad's hometown.  When I cooked them this afternoon, I forgot to look back at my regrets from last year's Hoppin' John, and made a full batch again. Whoops. Looks like we'll probably end up with a frittata again.

Here's to hoping for a wonderful 2014! Hopefully all those blackeyed peas will bring oodles of luck!

Ribs & BBQ & Such

Last weekend, Mike and I went to Sonny Bryan's Smokehouse for lunch. There are two locations here in Utah, although it is a Texas-based company.

It's a fast-food sort of place where you order right when you walk in the door. One thing I really liked was that the main menu had stars next to every item that contained gluten. We went while they were fairly slow, but the guy who took our order was great about taking down that we didn't want any rolls, as well as making sure that Mike's macaroni and cheese was separate from everything else.

We split a 3/4 pound plate of pulled pork, pulled beef, and jalapeno sausage. It was just the right amount of food for two. The plate also came with two sides, so I had coleslaw and Mike had macaroni and cheese. All their barbecue sauces are gluten-free too. The pork was definitely better than the beef, but the jalapeno sausage was also excellent. The  coleslaw was so-so. While I know I can make better BBQ at home, it's nice to have an option to eat it out on the town every now and then, and we're looking forward to eating there again.

The worst part of the whole thing was that I was planning on making ribs and macaroni and cheese that very night. I'm pretty sure Mike wouldn't have minded eating the same thing two meals in a row - especially when it involved macaroni and cheese - but I decided to put it off until the next night.

And it was a good thing, too. I made this recipe for the ribs, more or less (less hot sauce, water to make up the difference), and my macaroni and cheese recipe, which was premade in the freezer. While I'm always disappointed about how hard ribs are to eat, these were tender, juicy, and pretty flavorful. Worth the seven-hour wait, and definitely a good option for later on.