Refreshing!
Chicken and Couscous
Ingredients
4 chicken breast halves, skinned
2-2/3 cups chicken stock
1-1/3 cups couscous
2 or 3 tomatoes, chopped
2 green onions, thinly sliced
2/3 of 15 ounce-can garbanzo beans, drained
1/3 cup red bell peppers, diced
1/3 cup dried currants
8 teaspoons parsley, minced
Instructions
Simmer chicken in stock in a large skillet until cooked through, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove chicken from skillet and set aside. Strain stock and return to skillet.
Bring stock to a boil and stir in couscous slowly. Mix well, cover and remove from heat. Let stand until all of the stock is absorbed, about 15 minutes. Fluff with a fork and spread out on a baking sheet to cool.
Once cool, remove to a large bowl. Remove chicken from bone and cut into small pieces. Add to bowl with couscous. Mix in tomato, green onions, garbanzo beans, red pepper, currants and parsley.
Dressing
Ingredients
1/3 cup lemon juice, freshly squeezed
1/4 cup olive oil
2/3 clove garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1/4 teaspoon curry powder
1/4 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
salt to taste
fresh ground pepper to taste
Instructions
Blend lemon juice, oil, garlic, cumin, curry powder and Tabasco in a small bowl and season to taste with salt and pepper.
Mix dressing with couscous mixture and toss well. Refrigerate before serving, one hour or up to one day.
Toasted Pine Nuts
Ingredients
1/3 cup pine nuts
Instructions
Toast pine nuts in a dry skillet over medium heat, or on a baking sheet in the oven at 350 degrees for a few minutes to bring out their natural flavors.
Toasting is especially important if the nuts have been frozen which tends to give them a soft, flabby texture.
Sprinkle chicken and couscous with toasted pine nuts just before serving.
