Griddled Halloumi with Spiced Couscous

175g couscous
1/2 tsp each cinnamon, cumin and coriander
vegetables, such as tomatoes, courgette, broccoli, sugarsnap peas
300ml hot vegetable stock
250g halloumi cheese
juice of 1/2 lemon
drizzle of olive oil

Mix the couscous with spices in a bowl, pour over the hot stock, then cover and leave to stand for 5 minutes. Heat a griddle pan. Cut the halloumi into 6-8 slices and cookquickly on each side for 2 minutes. Mix the vegetables (griddled courgette slices, steamed broccoli and peas) and tomatoes into the couscous, squeeze in the lemon juice and drizzle with oil. Pile onto two plates and top with the halloumi.

Stuffed peppers

Delicious hot or cold

Maroccan chicken stew with lemon and olives

Specially for my sister, and she knows why. She went to Marocco and had to go through the hell of haggling over the price of saffron for me...

2 tbsp olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
4 garlic gloves
5 cm fresh ginger
1/2 tsp turmeric
4 chicken breast fillets
1 small cinnamon stick
a pinch of saffron
600 ml chicken stock
1 small lemon - zest an juice
a handful of each chopped mint and parsley
275 g couscous
a handful of pine nuts
12-15 black pitted olives

Heat oil in a pan or small pot, cook the onion, chopped garlic (leave 1 tsp aside), chopped ginger and turmeric for a minute. Add chicken, cinnamon, saffron, stock and lemon juice. Season well and cook for 20 minutes. In the meantime mix garlic that you have put aside, lemon zest and herbs. Put aside.
Remove chicken from the stock and keep warm, boil stock for another 10 minutes or until the liquid is reduced by half. In the meantime pour 450ml of boiling water over couscous, cover an leave for 5 minutes. Then mix in the pine nuts and season. Finally, mix chicken with sauce, olives and herb mixture.