Cous cous with fresh peas, grilled baby zucchini and citrus fruits {vegan}

(cliccate qui per la versione italiana)

Happy Monday! Writing to you from New York City. It’s so beautiful out here: sunny but quite crispy for once. I’ll be here for another week, I’m having so much fun trying out lots of vegan food spots.

Today’s dish is SO SIMPLE and SO GOOD. It’s just plain cous cous with peas and baby zucchini and dressed in evo oil, lemon and orange juice/zest with some fresh mint. That’s it! But oh such powerful summery flavors.

This recipe may look very spring-y but I actually found all the ingredients at a local market just before leaving on this trip, so about 1-2 weeks ago. Even the oranges! I made this for my family and they all loved it. I’m usually not a huge fan of cous cous for its texture but lately I’ve been using it quite often, I like its versatility (stay tuned for another savory cous cous post soon).

p.s. I normally can’t find yellow baby zucchinis, that’s why they appear in one photo only, sadly!

COUS COUS WITH FRESH PEAS, GRILLED BABY ZUCCHINI AND CITRUS FRUITS {vegan}
by Marta Giaccone

Recipe
serves 2-3
prep time: 10 mins, cook time: 20 mins, total: 30 mins

½ cup / 90 gr cous cous
½ cup / 125 ml vegetable stock or salted water
½ cup / 80 gr peas, fresh or frozen
2 shallots
10 baby courgettes with their flowers
1 tbsp orange zest, finely grated
1 tbsp lemon zest, finely grated
2 tbsp orange juice
2 tbsp lemon juice
handful fresh mint leaves
evo oil
salt

Method

1. Bring vegetable stock to a boil. Put cous cous in a bowl, pour liquid over it, cover with a plate or lid and leave to rest for 5 minutes. Fluff it up with a fork. If too dry or not wholly cooked, add some more hot liquid one tbsp at a time and let rest again.
2. Chop shallots and add to a small pan along with the fresh/frozen peas, 2 tbsp of evo oil and 2 tbsp water. Heat up over a medium-low flame and let cook for about 10 minutes. Add a few more tbsp of water whenever you see it’s been absorbed. Add salt once done.
3. Prepare your citronette (lemon-based dressing): in a small bowl combine a little bit of evo oil, lemon and orange juice, lemon and orange zest, salt and chopped mint leaves (everything to taste).
4. Transfer cous cous to a larger bowl along with the cooked peas and pour the citronette over it. Mix well.
5. Grill courgettes: cut them in half lengthwise, brush them with a tiny amount of evo oil and then cook them on a very hot grill pan or barbecue for about 2-3 minutes on each side. If you want the pretty grill marks only move them once when you’re flipping them!
6. Use remaining mint leaves, lemon and orange peel to decorate the cous cous. Enjoy!