Green Couscous

Since it seems that spring has already arrived in Chicago (something very unusual here at this time of the year), the time for stews and heavy soups came to an end...
In order to welcome this early arrival of spring I decided to make this recipe from Yotam Ottolenghi. It is a simple couscous dish with lots of different herbs. The savory component of spring onion and green chile is balanced with sweet caramelized onions. The dish tastes so fresh that it always leaves you wanting more! I made it with Israeli couscous that I cooked for 10 minutes (instead of the smaller version of couscous) and loved it that way.

Green Couscous

(Yotam Ottolenghi)

Ingredients

• 1 cup couscous
• 3/4 cup boiling water or vegetable stock
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 small onion, thinly sliced
• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• 
  
• Herb Paste

• 1/3 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
• 6 tablespoons olive oil, plus more as needed

1/2 cup unsalted pistachios, toasted and coarsely chopped

• 3 scallions, finely sliced
• 1 fresh green chile, such as jalapeno, finely sliced
• 1 1/2 cups arugula leaves, chopped

Directions

1. Place couscous in a large bowl and add boiling water or stock. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let stand for 10 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, heat olive oil over medium heat and add onion; cook, stirring, until golden and soft. Add salt and cumin; stir to combine. Remove from heat and let cool slightly.

Herb Paste

1. Place all ingredients in the bowl of a food processor; process until smooth, scraping down the sides and adding more oil as necessary.
2. Uncover couscous and stir in herb paste, using a fork to fluff. Add onion mixture, pistachios, scallions, chile, and arugula; gently mix to combine. Serve at room temperature.

Bright Green Asparagus Soup

                         

With chirping birds outside, the sun shining bright and a sky so incredibly clear and blue you could have thought that spring was finally here last week. It felt like we could take out the garden furniture and start cleaning up the winter dirt.  But we all do know better, right? There is still more winter to come, I am sure about that. But I realized when entering our local supermarket, that the choice of vegetables is already changing and I found some very fresh bright green asparagus. So I decided to whip up this beautiful soup.

The recipe comes from Cooks Illustrated and it is bursting with asparagus flavor, flawlessly smooth yet without lots of cream and butter. To keep the color bright green they added peas to the soup. Pretty, don't you think? 

Creamy Asparagus Soup
Serves 4

Look for asparagus spears that are not more than 1/2 inch thick. If using thicker spears, use a vegetable peeler to peel the length of the spears before cooking to ensure a silky soup.


2 bunches thin asparagus (about 2 pounds) tough ends trimmed
2 leeks, white and light green parts only, halved lengthwise, sliced thin and rinsed thoroughly
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Salt and Pepper
3 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup frozen peas (2 ounces)
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup half and half
1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

1. Cut the tips off the asparagus spears and chop the remaining spears into 1/2 inch pieces. Bring 1/2 cup of water to a boil in an 8-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the asparagus tips, cover, and cook until the tips are tender, about 2 minutes. Remove the tips, pat dry, and set aside.

2. Combine the remaining asparagus pieces, leeks, butter, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon papper in a large saucepan. Cover and cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, 8 - 10 minutes.

3. Add broth to the pot, bring to a simmer, and cook until the vegetables are completely tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in the peas and Parmesan.

4. Working in two batches, process the soup in a blender until completely smooth, 2 to 3 minutes. Return the soup to the pot. Stir in the reserved asparagus tips, half- and half, and lemon juice and cook until heated through, about 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste, and serve.