Earthy Israeli Couscous & Planting an Urban Herb Garden

I am always so inspired by visiting Jayson Home in Lincoln Park, Illinois.  The shop is an ever evolving mix of one of a kind vintage pieces and sophisticated modern home furnishings and accessories hand selected from all over the globe.  I love the layout of their gardens:  the lines and symmetry, contrasting textures and colors.  I feel inspired to plant, cook, and design interiors.  It all goes hand in hand in life.  If you have an artistic eye, it travels everywhere you go and crosses many disciplines.

I live in a loft on the ground floor and have a couple of zinc planters for planting a garden.  It is just enough to satisfy my therapeutic need that only digging in soil can fulfill. I came home equipped with the basics to plant an herb garden:  rosemary, English thyme, lemon thyme, oregano, sage, marjoram, and lavender.   I’ll buy fresh basil and Italian parsley from my local farmer’s market when they open in May.

This recipe is an amalgamation of various inspirations.  First, it was the gardens and the vibrant greens, then the plump amber golden raisins that I found at Fox and Obel, and I had just carted home a 4 lb bag of these lovely pearl shaped rosemary Israeli couscous from a local market.  I don’t particularly love raisins, but these were gorgeous and uniquely flavored sweet ones.  Hence, a bit of rummaging about in the refrigerator once I got home and tasting and sampling and voila!  I had to play around with the flavors.  I wasn’t sure if I wanted to take this couscous more savory or sweet until I arrived, tasted, and loved.

The fresh ground cinnamon and thyme make this recipe earthy.   Perfectly contrasted by the freshness of the citrus, peppery arugula, toasted almonds, and sweet raisins…it’s a keeper.  So, make plenty and share with friends.  I must admit though, as I was unpacking my finds, I realized that those silly golden raisins had distracted me from the chocolates.  And, for this very reason I quite possibly will come to regret my momentary obsession with of all things, raisins.

Earthy Israeli Couscous

Ingredients:

1 c Israeli couscous
1/2 c large golden raisins
1/2 c sliced almonds, toasted
1/3 red onion, finely chopped
3 sprigs of thyme
2 generous handfuls of arugula
zest of 1 orange
juice of 1/2 orange
juice of 1/2 lemon
1/4 t cinnamon
Fustini's Provencal Herbes Olive Oil
salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place almonds on a small sheet pan and toast for 5-7 minutes. Set aside to cool.

Finely dice the red onion. In a large saute pan, heat 1 t olive oil and saute the onion for 3-4 minutes. Set aside in a bowl. In the same saute pan over medium heat, warm 1 T olive oil and add the couscous and toast, stirring constantly, for 2-3 minutes. Stir in 1/2 t sea salt and 1/4 t cinnamon. Add 2 cups of water, bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium, and cook until the couscous is al dente (tender but firm to the bite), about 10 minutes. Drain any excess water and set aside to cool to room temperature.

Remove thyme leaves from the stems. Zest the orange. Juice the orange and lemon.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the couscous, raisins, almonds, onion, thyme, and arugula. Add the orange zest, orange juice, and lemon juice. Salt and pepper to taste. Lightly toss. Serve at room temperature.

Serves 4.