Week 25, Recipes 5 & 6: Veggie Couscous Stacks & Greek Diner Salad

Both recipes from Rachael Ray's Classic 30 Minute Meals

Veggie Couscous Stacks

• 2 cloves garlic, cracked from skin with the flat of a knife
• 1 cup EVOO
• 1 medium eggplant, sliced 1/2 inch thick
• 1 medium zucchini, thinly sliced on an angle
• 4 or 5 sprigs rosemary, leaves stripped & finely chopped (3 tbsp)
• coarse salt, fresh ly ground black pepper to taste
• 2 roasted red peppers, drained & quartered
• 6 slices red onion, 1/2 inch thick
• 1 can (14 oz) chicken broth, empty can reserved
• 2 cups couscous
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 lb. fresh smoked mozzarella, sliced into 12 thin slices
• 12 leaves fresh basil
• 2 vine-ripe tomatoes, thinly sliced

Results: You were supposed to cook the ingredients, then stack them in the can to make pretty layers... except I had hungry people staring at me and I needed to get dinner on the table quickly so I remixed this and stacked the layers in a fan minus the mozzarella & basil.  Instead I sprinkled some feta across the pile.  It tasted awesome but I would definitely recommend using salt & pepper on the eggplant and zucchini when it goes in the oven.

Greek Diner Salad

• 2 cloves, Garlic
• 1/3 cups, Extra virgin olive oil
• 1/3 cups, Lemon juice
• 1 count, Romaine lettuce
• 1/4 teaspoons, Allspice
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 2 tablespoons, Oregano
• 1 Cucumber, sliced
• Kalamata olives, to taste
• 2 Roma tomatoes
• 4 ounces, Feta
• 4 pepperoncinis

1. Place garlic and oil in an oven safe dish. Bake at 300 deg. until garlic speaks and starts to develop color.
2. Remove garlic from olive oil and whisk in lemon juice, allspice, salt and pepper. Set aside.
3. Combine the rest of the ingredients and toss with dressing.

Results: The salad was BEAUTIFUL!!  I didn't like the dressing at all.  I used cucumber yogurt sauce instead.