Easy Chicken and Couscous

So I am not a professional blogger, I am not a professional cook or professional photographer.  I am just a gal that likes to cook and try new foods.  By a push from my gal pals I am starting this blog to post recipes of the foods I am making and recipes I am testing.  I know there are a million food blogs out there but trust me when I say this.....I will only post recipes that I have approved and that will not allow you to experience "pinterest fails."

To my gal pals....I hope this helps:)

So bare with me as I get this blogging thing figured out.  I know it will not be pretty for awhile but I hope that these first few recipes you add to your cooking schedule.

One of the most daunting tasks of the day for me can be dinner.  If I am not prepared then I am in trouble.  I also find that it is way easier to come up with a main dish then a side dish, besides some sort of vegetable.  So tonight I had already planned on eating chicken but as it was grilling I needed to come up with some quick side dishes. So I rummaged through my pantry and found some couscous that cooks up in no time and just added some accessories that turned it from plain to delicious.

For the chicken I found an amazing marinade on pinterest that came together in minutes.  The recipe is found on this website.Happily Unprocessed. I hate dirtying dishes so I put a gallon Ziploc bag in a large cup with the edges folded over.  Then I added all my ingredients and whisked.  Since I buy my chicken from Sams Club it tends to be a thicker breast so I prefer to cut the breast in half length wise to even it out.  You could also pound out the chicken breast but slicing it in half is just easier.  Then I add the chicken to the mixture and seal up the bag and marinate it in the fridge for at least 2 hours.

Sweet and Savory Pecan and Yam Couscous

Ingredients

1. 1 cup couscous
2. 1 cup chicken broth
3. 1 large yam or sweet potato
4. 1/2 cup pecans
5. 1/2 cup craisins
6. 4 T of butter
7. 2 tsp cinnamon
8. 1 T agave syrup
9. olive oil
10. salt and pepper

Directions

Peel yam and dice into small cubes.  Place on lined baking sheet with tin foil.  Drizzle olive oil over yams and sprinkle on 1-2 tsp of cinnamon.  Then sprinkle salt and toss yams until evenly coated.  Place in oven at 425 for 15-20 minutes or until soft and tender.  Flip yams half way through.

While yams are baking put 2 Tbs of butter in a frying pan on med-low and add the pecans, sprinkle with some cinnamon and the agave.  You may not need a full tablespoon, just enough to give it a little sweetness.  You can also use honey or any other sugar you prefer.  I just happened to have agave right there.  Let the pecans brown slowly in the butter, keep flipping them and moving them around in the pan so they do not burn.  Once fragrant and toasted take pecans out of pan and set aside.

Next add chicken broth to a pot and allow it to come to a boil.  Stir in couscous and craisins and remove pot from burner, cover and allow to sit till the moisture is soaked up and the couscous is soft and tender.  While the couscous is sitting brown 2 Tbs of butter.  This part is optional but really adds to the flavor. When the couscous is done stir in the butter, yams and pecans. 

Pair this with a spinach  salad and the grilled chicken and you will have a dinner that looks and tastes amazing.  For the spinach salad I just used bagged spinach, frozen blueberries that I thawed in the microwave, sliced green onions and your cheese of choice.  I like Gorgonzola as well as Cotija cheese.  The dressing I used is a terrific dressing from Sams Club.  It is a balsamic vinaigrette from Panera bread.  It can be used as a dressing and a marinade.  It goes really well with any kind of fruit salad.

Hope you try this one out!

Happy cooking

Amie