Chicken, Pepper & Mushroom Tikka Kebabs & Cous Cous

We have a new grill at our home & I am ecstatic... My hubby has been grilling pretty well with it! I prep the food then he cooks it. I do the sides. Oh and desserts (But not in this post!) It was a teensy bit rainy tonight but that did not stop us. Oh no! And why? I also got a new cookbook- "Entice with Spice" by Shubhra Ramineni & I am in love!!! Tonight's dinner was inspired by one of Shubhra's recipes called Chicken & Bell Pepper Tikka Kebabs. This was delicious & a nice change from bbq sauce :)

I make my kabobs, so similar to hers but I add mushrooms for my hubby... And used Shubhra's marinade (with extra reserved for dipping):

Chicken, Pepper & Mushroom Tikka Kebabs 

• Grill Spray
• Package of skewers, soaked in water for 30 minutes
• 1 lb. boneless Chicken breast or tenders, cut into 2" cubes
• 2-3 bell Peppers, sliced into 2" pieces (I used green, red & yellow)
• 1 Onion, sliced into 2" pieces
•  Handful white, button Mushrooms

Place the items on the skewers, alternating... I do onion/chicken/onion/pepper/onion/chicken/onion/mushroom/onion/chicken/onion/pepper...

Brush with the marinade (recipe below) & grill till the chicken is cooked well, turning the kabobs... about 8 minutes on each side.



Tikka Marinade

• 1 TBSp Garlic, minced
• Zest & juice 1 Lemon
• 1/2 tsp Coriander
• 1/4 tsp Tumeric
• 1/4 tsp cayenne
• 1/4 tsp Salt
• 1/2 tsp fresh cracked Pepper
• 3 TBSp Plain Yogurt

Whisk together all of the above ingredients.


*Lishie tip- Place a small amount of the marinade aside to use to dip the skewers!


As a side, I decided to make a quick cous cous:
Sauteed Pepper Cous Cous
2 TBSp Canola Oil
1/2 of a Bell Pepper, chopped, set aside from above (I used 1/4 yellow & 1/4 red)
1/4 of an Onion, chopped, also set aside from above
1 & 1/2 cups Cous Cous
2 cups Water


Heat the oil in a small sauce pan on Medium heat. Add the onion & pepper & saute until the onion is translucent & the pepper is soft but with some "bite" left. With a slotted spoon, remove it from the pan then drain the oil. Add the water into the pan & bring to a boil. Add the cous cous, shut off the heat & fluff/mix. Cover & set aside for 5 minutes to rest. Add in the sauteed pepper & onion & fluff the cous cous before serving.

And everything was cooked, cleaned & eaten with enough time for some after dinner crafting with G!

Happy Flag Day! 6*14*11
<3 Lish

Cous Cous Primavera

Yesterday, April 12th, was "National Grill Cheese Day" & I made some Caprese Panini- Fresh mozzarella, basil & tomato with extra virgin olive oil & balsamic vinegar. YUM! But I wanted something on the side too, so I made a simple yet delish, cous cous primavera:

Grilled, fresh goodness!

Cous Cous Primavera

• Cooking Spray
• 1 Red Bell Pepper, thickly sliced
• 1 Zucchini, sliced into coin shapes, then halved
• 1 cup Water Or Chicken Stock
• 1 cup Cous Cous
• Zest & Juice of 1 Lemon
• Freshly grated Parmesan Cheese

Using a oil-sprayed grill man on Medium-high heat, grill the zucchini & red pepper slices, about 2-3 minutes on each side.


In a sauce pan, bring the water (or stock) to a boil... turn off heat & add the cous cous. Cover for 5 minutes then fluff cous cous with a fork. Add lemon zest, grilled veggies & lemon juice. Toss lightly & top with grated parmesan cheese. 

Enjoy as a side or on on it's own! YUM.

Cooking Light CHALLENGE- Couscous-Stuffed Chicken

When my friend Lisa @ Lisa's Cooking Adventures requested Guest-testers for Cooking Light's 25 Healthy Chicken Breast Recipes, I couldn't wait to cook one... I actually went with a recipe I had already tried before with hopes of tweaking it: Couscous-Stuffed Chicken. The first time I made it following the recipe as written to a "t"; it was tasty but somewhat dry. And I also wanted to just take the "bones" of the recipe & switch it up so instead of going Greek, I made it Italian style. This is the list of ingredients I used:

Couscous-Stuffed Chicken 

• 1  cup  fat-free, lower-sodium chicken stock
• 3/4  cup  uncooked couscous
• drizzles of extra-virgin olive oil
• salt  & pepper (I only measure salt when I am baking)
• grated mozzarella (not fresh)
• grated parmesan (fresh)
• zest & juice of 1 lemon
• chopped fresh basil
• chopped fresh parsley
• 1  minced garlic clove
• 4  (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

I made the couscous on the side- Boiled 1 cup chicken stock with a drizzle olive oil, s&p... took off heat, added couscous & covered. Allowed it to cool... Fluffed couscous with a fork then microplaned mozzarella, parmesan cheese & lemon zest into the couscous. Squeezed 1/2 lemon's juice into it... Added the chopped basil & parsley & garlic...

Flattened out the chicken between 2 pieces of plastic wrap. Dropped couscous onto the middle of the thinned chicken & rolled it up, secured it with (pre-soaked) toothpicks. S&P.

Pre-heated my oven to 400°.

Heated my stainless steel saute pan, rubbed with olive oil, over medium-high heat. Seared chicken on both sides... (And here is where I veered from the recipe & tweaked it) Added some chicken stock & a little white wine to "deglaze" the pan.  Spooned the extra couscous mixture so that it surrounded the chicken... Juiced the remaining half of the lemon & microplaned a little parmesan on top for some crisp. Then transferred the saute pan to the oven for 8 minutes. 

Verdict: It came out very juicy (unlike the first time I tried the recipe). The chicken was fine... just fine but the couscous was delicious! Hubby & I decided I'd make the couscous this way next time but as a side dish. All in all a hit because we really enjoyed the couscous.  


PS- there is rolled chicken hidden under the couscous in the picture :) BUT the couscous is the star!