Recipe: Grilled Vegetable Couscous w/Lemon & Goat Cheese…Yum!

by Melissa Lee (a.k.a. LilaMae)

Ahem. Yes I cook. In fact…I am an awesome cook. What does this have to do with skepticism? Well cooking is sciencey. (You find your own way through that logic maze.)

The dish is so yummy when I ran out of the first batch I immediately went to the store to get ingredients for a second batch. Two notable awesome things about this “salad” is that it makes for spectacular leftovers hot or cold (if you have pita pocket bread to stuff it in, it makes a great sandwich) and it can be made with or without the chicken so vegetarians can enjoy it as well.

I took pics and everything so here we go. (printer friendly version below)

Makes about 10 cups.
Time: About 30 min.

1.) For the vegetables, toss:

• 2 or 3 zucchini, sliced
• 1lb asparagus, trimmed
• 1 red onion, cut into 1/2 inch slices
• 1 red bell pepper, cut into large pieces
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• salt & pepper

 

 

 

2.) Preheat grill to medium high (I use my George Foreman and grill veg’s in 2 batches) and brush w/oil. Toss the vegetables with the olive oil , salt & pepper. Grill, covered, until charred (about 5-6min). At this point you can chop all the veggies into bite size pieces on a cutting board…or else I just put everything in a bowl and start cutting it with kitchen scissors (less messy that way). Set veggies aside.

3.) Cook one 10oz box of couscous with 1Tbsp lemon zest, set aside.

4.) (If you’re vegetarian you can skip this step) Grill :

• 4 chicken breasts (4-5oz)

Season with salt & pepper & grill about 5 min per side. Then toss with:

• 3 Tbsp butter, melted
• 1 Tbsp each minced fresh parsley, lemon zest, & lemon juice

5.) Stir together in a large bowl:

• 3 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 pint of halved grape or cherry tomatoes
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 1/4 cup chopped scallions

6.) Add couscous, grilled vegetables, and chicken.
Season w/salt & pepper. Top with 3 oz crumbled goat cheese.

7.) Email me to thank me for sharing this fan-effing-tastic recipe.

Enjoy! 🙂

********printable version!!!**********

Grilled Vegetable Couscous w/Lemon & Goat Cheese

Makes about 10 cups.
Time: About 30 min.

1.) For the vegetables, toss:

•    2 or 3 zucchini, sliced
•    1lb asparagus, trimmed
•    1 red onion, cut into 1/2 inch slices
•    1 red bell pepper, cut into large pieces
•    2 Tbsp olive oil
•    salt & pepper

2.) Preheat grill to medium high (I use my George Foreman and grill veg’s in 2 batches) and brush w/oil. Toss the vegetables with the olive oil , salt & pepper. Grill, covered, until charred (about 5-6min). At this point you can chop all the veggies into bite size pieces on a cutting board…or else I just put everything in a bowl and start cutting it with kitchen scissors (less messy that way). Set veggies aside.

3.) Cook one 10oz box of couscous with 1Tbsp lemon zest, set aside.

4.) (If you’re vegetarian you can skip this step) Grill :
•    4 chicken breasts (4-5oz)
Season with salt & pepper & grill about 5 min per side. Then toss with:
•    3 Tbsp butter, melted
•    1 Tbsp each minced fresh parsley, lemon zest, & lemon juice

5.) Stir together in a large bowl:
•    3 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
•    2 Tbsp olive oil
•    1 pint of halved grape or cherry tomatoes
•    1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
•    1/4 cup chopped scallions

•    3 oz crumbled goat cheese

6.) Add couscous, grilled vegetables, and chicken.
Season w/ salt & pepper. Top with goat cheese.

7.) Email me to thank me for sharing this fan-effing-tastic recipe.

🙂 Enjoy!