Est-qu'il y a des Vegetariens en France?

Couscous salad with spinach, parsley and spring onions
Wednesday, May 16, 2007

Vegetarian recipes from recently released cookbooks:

Book cover courtesy of bn.com.

"Vegetable Harvest: Vegetables at the Center of the Plate," by Patricia Wells (William Morrow, 2007)

A cornucopia of vegetables may not be the first image that comes to mind when you think of French cuisine. But French food expert Patricia Wells, who spends part of the year in Provence, found new inspiration in fresh vegetables for her new cookbook. Tripling the amount of vegetables in each meal, she starts with seasonal produce and works her way back to the inevitable meat entree. Vegetarians will find a good sprinkling of French culinary ideas -- but watch out for the chicken stock. -- Evelyn Shih

* * *

Couscous salad with spinach, parsley and spring onions
* 1 cup medium-grain instant couscous
* 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
* 11/3 cups hottest possible tap water
* 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
* 1 bunch fresh parsley, leaves only (2 cups loosely packed)
* 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
* 3 spring onions or 6 scallions, trimmed and cut into very thin rings
* 5 ounces (4 cups loosely packed) fresh spinach, rinsed, dried, stems removed and cut into chiffonade (long, thin strips)
* 3 tablespoons creamy lemon-chive dressing (See note)

Photo courtesy of farm1.static.flickr.com.

In a large, shallow bowl, combine the couscous and the salt. Toss with a fork to blend. Add the water and fluff until the grains are evenly separated. Set aside and occasionally fluff and toss the grains until all the liquid has been absorbed, about 3 minutes.

In a food processor or a blender, combine the lemon juice, parsley leaves, and olive oil and process until the parsley is finely chopped. Toss the parsley mixture and the spring onions with the couscous.

To serve, toss the spinach chiffonade with just enough dressing to evenly coat the greens. Add the dressed spinach to the couscous mixture and toss gently to blend evenly.

Servings: 12.

Note: For the dressing, shake 2 tablespoons of lemon juice with ½ teaspoon of fine sea salt in a jar until the salt dissolves. Add 1 cup of light cream and 1/3 cup of finely minced chives, and taste for seasoning before serving.

Copyright © 2007 North Jersey Media Group Inc.