Check out Rosh Hashanah menus:
Couscous wth 7 Vegetables
Bring the hostages home.
There is rarely a picture of Moroccan-Jewish cuisine that doesn’t include couscous and vegetables. Moroccan cuisine is a favorite in Israel, with many immigrants long established there. The spices are warm, fragrant and a bit piquant. Couscous is traditionally cooked, heaping mounts of vegetables gracing the dish. Couscous with 7 Vegetables has as many or as few vegetables as you like (Who’s counting?) The recipe is vegan but this dish can be paired with almost any main course, fish, meat or poultry. Couscous is a Moroccan and Israeli staple and this beloved dish is often eaten on holidays, such as Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. It’s budget friendly and easy to make. There are many versions of this recipe—use the one below or craft you own and tell me all about it! I think I’m going to be eating this recipe all year round, with its readily available vegetables, infinite variations (my favorite!) and deliciously aromatic spices. Use up leftover roasted or stewed vegetables by adding the spices listed and serving on top of couscous.
Couscous with 7 Vegetables
Yield: 4 as main course, 8 as side dish
Spices
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 cup fresh parsley or 1 teaspoon dried
Vegetables
1 large onion, peeled and sliced
3-4 whole garlic cloves, peeled
2-3 medium carrots, peeled and cut into large chunks or slices
1 turnip, peeled and chopped or sliced
1 sweet potato, peeled and cubed
1 medium zucchini, sliced into 1” pieces
2 stalks of celery, chopped
1 small cabbage, cored and cut into wedges
1 chili pepper, crushed or pierced several times with a fork, but left whole, optional
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
Fresh parsley
Other
1 tablespoon olive oil, more if needed
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 cups broth
1 1/2 cup dried couscous
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts or almonds for topping, optional
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Mix spices together. Reserve.
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Add olive oil to a large skillet over a medium heat. Add onion and sauté until transparent. Add garlic cloves and sauté for 1-2 minutes.
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Add tomato paste and stir until softens and mix with onions. Add spices and sauté for 2-3 minutes.
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Add carrots, turnips and sweet potato. Stir to mix with spices. Sauté for 3-4 minutes. Add zucchini, celery, cabbage, chili pepper and broth. The liquid should cover the vegetables. Add more broth or water, if needed. Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce the heat to a simmer.
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After 20 minutes, add the cabbage. Simmer another 20 minutes or until all the vegetables are fork tender. Taste and adjust seasoning to taste.
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Cook couscous according to the package directions. Toast couscous before cooking for an especially delicious and nutty flavor.
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Serve with vegetables heaped on top of couscous. Top with toasted pine nuts or almonds, if desired.
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You may serve as a side dish with fish (very popular), beef, lamb, veal or poultry.
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Expandthetable suggestions
Other veggies: Add small pumpkin, acorn or butternut squash, peeled, deseeded and chunked
Dried fruit: Golden raisins, apricots, dates., etc.
Gluten free: Use quinoa in place of couscous.
Allium free: Substitute 1 bulb fennel for the onion and 1-2 large radishes for the garlic, both vegetables sliced thinly.
Simanin for Rosh Hashanah: Add the traditional simanim for the recipe for the New Year’s meal.
Leftover vegetables: Add chicken or vegetarian broth and make a delicious soup!
Foodie Lit
Next Generation Indie Book
Awards Winner, 2024
The year 1939 is a year fraught with importance as WWII and the Holocaust have already begun in Europe and war preparations are ramping up in the US and Japan. The two 10-year-old main characters immediately create a tension. Ruby, a US citizen, is born to Japanese parents and living in Hawaii. Koji is going to school in Hiroshima. As soon we read these situations, we wait for the deportation of the West Coast Japanese Americans into the internment camps and for the first nuclear bomb to fall on Hiroshima. Connie and Kent Matsumoto, husband and wife authors, create a beautifully written historical novel, Of White Ashes, what it might have felt to live through these traumatic times, for both Ruby and Koji, their families and those around them. Connie told me, “Despite the scars left by war, the human spirit finds ways to keep love alive. Some find that their commitment to love and family becomes even more vital, serving as a reminder of what truly matters amidst the chaos. Such was the case with Hisao and Reiko (as reflected in their fictional characters, Koji and Ruby).”
