Sunday Dinner-Curried Couscous

We had some friends over for dinner tonight that we haven’t seen for a long time.

It was through the magic of blogs that we were reconnected, and I’m so glad because we had so much fun with them. And, it’s an added bonus that they have three boys too, that are almost the exact same ages as ours.

This is their youngest. I was particulary smitten with him. I mean, seriously. Look at this face. He is edible!

Before they arrived, I had a little talk with the boys about what it means to be a good host. When I asked The Fish what he thinks a good host is, he said, “Being nice.”
T said that being a good host means that when people come over you invite them in and say things like, “Hey, you wanna see my room? Here it is! Hey, you wanna see my toys? Here they are! Hey, you wanna see my butt? Here it is! (makes fart sound)”
I was totally impressed with his answer until that last part.
We grilled tonight again. Have I mentioned how I love to grill and eat outside? Well, I do. So, we had BBQ chicken with veggie kabobs and one of my favorite Barefoot Contessa recipes….Curried Couscous.
Do you like couscous? This one had lots of flavor. It’s got sweet and spicy, nutty and savory…it’s just delicious and super easy to make.

Barefoot Contessa’s Curried Couscous

1½ cups couscous
1 Tbsp. unsalted butter
1½ cups boiling water
¼ cup plain yogurt
¼ cup good olive oil
1 tsp. white wine vinegar
1 tsp. curry powder
¼ tsp. ground turmeric
1½ tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
½ cup grated (or small-diced) carrots
½ cup minced fresh flat-leaf parsley
½ cup dried currants
¼ cup blanched, sliced almonds
2 scallions, thinly sliced (white and green parts)
¼ cup small-diced red onion
Steps:
1. Place the couscous in a medium bowl. Melt the butter in the boiling water and pour over the couscous. Cover tightly and allow the couscous to soak for 5 minutes.

Fluff with a fork.
2. Whisk together the yogurt, olive oil, vinegar, curry, turmeric, salt, and pepper. Pour over the fluffed couscous and mix well with a fork. Add the carrots, parsley, currants, almonds, scallions, and red onions;

mix well and taste for seasonings. Serve at room temperature.

For dessert, I made this frozen key lime pie. Perfect for a summer meal.

After dinner, we (Kelly D. was there against his will) watched the sneak preview of Twilight on the MTV movie awards. Then we played a little Rock Band.
Good times. And we didn’t even need to see T’s bum!