Yvonne Maffeis Roast Chicken With Couscous Dates And Buttered Almonds Recipes

Steps:

• Bring the water, stock, and oil to a boil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the dates followed by the couscous. Cover the pan tightly with a lid, remove from the heat, and allow to sit for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Transfer to a serving bowl and serve.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 375 degrees. In a large ovenproof dish or pot with a tight lid, combine 2 tablespoons olive oil, the lemon juice, the ginger, the pepper and 1 teaspoon salt. Add the chicken and rub it around in the mixture until evenly coated. Turn chicken breast side down and roast, uncovered, for 50 minutes.
• Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine couscous, 2 cups water and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Set aside for 5 to 15 minutes to soak.
• In a small skillet, melt the butter. Add almonds and cook, stirring constantly, just until toasted and golden; adjust heat so almonds and butter do not scorch. Turn off heat and stir in dates.
• Add almond-date mixture to couscous, along with any butter left in pan, and mix, fluffing the grains with a fork. Mix in 2 tablespoons olive oil, the sugar, the cinnamon and the orange blossom water (if using).
• Drizzle or paint honey over top of chicken (leave chicken breast-side down in pot). Add couscous mixture to the pot, arranging it around the chicken. Cover tightly with a lid or foil and return to the oven for 30 minutes more.
• Remove from the oven. When cool enough to handle, remove chicken and carve into serving pieces. Stir and fluff couscous, scraping up any chicken skin stuck to bottom of pan, and place chicken pieces back on top of couscous. Sprinkle with chopped herbs and serve immediately.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/ gas 4. Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a large frying pan over a high heat. Season the chicken, then cook for 10 mins or until browned on both sides. Remove and put in a large baking dish with the dry couscous.
• Heat the remaining oil in the pan, add the onions and garlic, and cook for 5 mins until softened. Add the zest and juice of 1 lemon along with the stock, cumin, cinnamon and dates, then bring to the boil.
• Pour the date mixture over the chicken and couscous, sprinkle over the almonds, cover with foil and bake for 20 mins. Serve sprinkled with the remaining zest and parsley.

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Melt half the butter in a pan over a medium heat and fry the onion until soft. Add the garlic, cumin, ginger and chilli, and cook for 2 mins more. Stir in the couscous, then pour over the stock and tip in the dates and barberries. Turn off the heat, cover and leave for 15 mins for the couscous to absorb the liquid.
• Use a fork to stir the walnuts, herbs and spring onions through the couscous. Leave to cool.
• Stuff the chicken with the cooled couscous mixture, pushing it well into the cavity. Let the excess spill out into the tin, then slide it under the chicken to act as a trivet. Rub the remaining butter all over the chicken. Season, then roast for 1 hr 15 mins. Keep an eye on it and if the couscous stuffing that's spilled out is getting too dark, cover it with foil.
• To make the saffron butter, melt the unsalted butter, then add a generous pinch of saffron and let this sit for about 30 mins, to allow the butter to be properly infused. About 10 mins before the end of the cooking time, pour over the chicken. Serve with Greek yogurt and a green salad, if you like.