couscous!

So I took a brief hiatus from the blog (but not entirely from cooking) in order to finish up a semester of student teaching. Charming as those kiddos were, they really cut into my time for culinary adventures. Alas, it's been all about easy around here, and couscous has been a welcome addition to the regular rotation. It's quick, it's easy, it's cheap, and it's tasty, right?
Here are two recipes from my straight aunt Martha. While you might not use them to dazzle your dinner guests, it's possible you'll find that you happen to have all (or at least most) of the ingredients on a cold winter night, thus preventing a last-minute run to the grocery store.

#1 Couscous with chicken and orange
1 cup couscous
1 cup shredded rotisserie chicken
1/3 cup pistachios, toasted and coarsely chopped
1 navel orange, peeled and coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint leaves
2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons red-wine vinegar
coarse salt and ground pepper

In a medium bowl, pour 1 cup boiling water over couscous. Cover and let sit until tender, 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork. In another medium bowl, combine chicken, pistachios, orange, mint, oil and vinegar. Season with salt and pepper. Toss couscous with chicken mixture.

I'm quite sure we had neither mint nor pistachios, but it hit the spot anyway.

#2 Couscous with spinach and onions
1 medium onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups chicken broth
some spinach, chopped
1 cup couscous
2 tablespoons lemon juice
salt, pepper, whatev.

In a saucepan, cook and stir onion and garlic in hot oil until tender. Add the broth and spinach. Bring mixture to a boil and stir occasionally. Add in couscous; stir to combine. Cover, remove pan from heat, and let stand 5 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Add remaining ingredients; stir to combine.