Lamb Koftas & Giant Couscous with Roasted Vegetables

I've got a thing about lamb at the moment.  My slow roast shoulder of lamb last week (it's not on this blog as not exactly WeightWatcher friendly!) was divine and we really enjoyed moussaka last week.  I'm always reluctant to have red meat as a mid-week supper as it does use up valuable ProPoints, but there is only so many times a week you can eat chicken!!

I was originally going to serve the lamb koftas with a tabouleh style dish but the weather changed so dramatically as the afternoon went on I wanted something more warming....then of course the sun came out again!  But never mind, couscous with roasted vegetables it was!

For the lamb koftas:

• 200g lean lamb mince
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 1 tsp harissa paste
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1/2 salt
• Sprinkling of cayenne pepper (optional)
• Half a small red onion, finely diced
• Handful fresh parsely, finely chopped
• Handful fresh mint, finely chopped

For the Couscous:

• 1 small aubergine, diced
• 1 yellow or orange pepper, diced
• 1 courgette, diced
• 8 or so cherry tomatoes
• A few mushrooms roughly chopped
• Half a red onion cut into wedges
• 120g giant wholewheat couscous
• 1 tsp dried rosemary
• Seasoning
• 1 tsp olive oil

What to do:
Mix all the ingredients for the koftas together in a bowl.  With slightly damp hands shape around 4 wooden skewers.  I am a bit sad and weigh everything so I weighed the mix and divided it equally into 4 portions each weighing 74g!  (I told you I was sad!). If you are using wooden skewers, be sure to soak them in cold water for 20 mins or so beforehand.  Refridgerate the skewers until required.

Chop your veggies up into bite sized pieces and place in a large roasting tray.  Use whatever veggies you like but I think this selection went really well with the lamb and couscous.  Season with salt & pepper and sprinkle over some dried rosemary.  Spray thoroughly using no more than 1 tsp olive oil.  Roast in a hot oven (200 fan) for a good 30 - 35 minutes turning every 10 minutes.

Heat a griddle pan until very hot.  Spray one side of the koftas with olive oil and place in hot pan.  Allow to sear and brown and the turn ensuring all sides are browned.  They should cook in about 10 minutes. 

Cook the couscous a saucepan following packet instructions.  I like to boil it in vegetable stock as it gives the couscous more flavour.  Drain well and mix into the roasting tray with the vegetables coating nicely in the juices that have been omitted in cooking.


WeightWatchers ProPoints Per Serving: 12

Harissa chicken with Giant Couscous & Roasted Veg

I have a new love in my life.  No not a new pair of killer hills (yeah right!) or a designer handbag (not that out of the question), but my BBQ!  I have realised how quick, easy, healthy and tasty it is to BBQ food. You may have noticed that I have gone a little skewer crazy this week, but I am truly loving the way you can add so much flavour to meat and it cooks so fast.  Admittedly I have a gas BBQ and that works great for me as you can simply light and go…

If you have never had giant couscous, you are missing out.  It's a treat in the mouth and is a very versatile, filling grain. Merchant Gourmet make a regular and wholewheat version and you can find it in Waitrose or Sainsburys.  You only need 50g per serving once paired with a decent amount of meat and vegetables which made tonight’s supper very WeightWatcher and Simming World friendly indeed.

You’ll need for 2:

For the chicken:

• 2 x 165g chicken breasts whole or cut into chunks
• 2 tsp tomato puree
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp white wine or cider vinegar
• 1 tsp harissa paste
• Seasoning

For the Couscous

• 100g giant couscous (or 120g regular couscous)
• Half a butternut squash, peeled and cut into small chunks
• 1 small red onion, chopped
• 1 small aubergine, chopped
• Handful cherry tomatoes, halved
• 3 tbsp tinned chick peas
• 1 tsp fennel seeds
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• Vegetable stock
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp olive oil
• Seasoning

What to do:

Mix the marinade ingredients together and add the chicken.  Leave to marinade in the fridge for a couple of hours. 

Toast the fennel and cumin seeds in a dry, hot frying pan and then pound using a mortar and pestle.

Place the vegetables in a roasting tray and coat in 1 tsp olive oil and seasoning and the ground spices.  Roast in a hot oven (200 fan) for around 30 minutes turning occasionally.  If the tray looks a little dry spoon over a couple of tablespoons of veg stock to moisten.  The tomatoes will also help to add moisture.

Place the couscous in a sauce pan and cover with vegetable stock.  Add the bay leaf and boil for 8 minutes (or follow the packet instructions) then drain in a sieve.  Add the chick peas for the last 2 -3 minutes of cooking to heat through.  Toss the drained couscous and chickpeas into the roasted vegetables and stir thoroughly.

At the same time as cooking the couscous, skewer the chicken and place on the BBQ, turning once.  If you are cooking the breast whole it may need longer and always make sure the chicken is cooked through with no pink showing.  Enjoy!

WeightWatchers Points Per Serving: 12

Lamb Skewers, Couscous & Roast Veggies

What a blowout Sunday I had!  I ate 2 portions of my husbands Nonna’s pasta al forno, a cornetto, a third of a cream cake and to top it all off I settled down to Sunday night TV with a slab of Taleggio and half a ciabatta!!!  What was I thinking??!!  I don’t even want to think about the ProPoints in all of that, let alone the wine that accompanied it all.

So time to knuckle down and knock off a few more lbs especially as I am on a 4 week countdown to holiday. 

I was really in the mood for some red meat and my mum had lamb chops marinating when I got to her house. This marinade is a flavour I will never forget.  Year after year and BBQ after BBQ Mum would marinade dozens of little lamb chops in this marinade and as a child I would feast on them.  You don’t get much on the little chops so now I am watching my weight I tend to go for a lean lamb leg steak removing any possible fat.  Portion control is critical so I allow 150g per person.

The longer this marinades the better and I allowed a good 4 hours.  When ready, skewer onto metal or soaked wooden skewers and bbq until cooked through.  You can grill turning occasionally.

You’ll need for 2:

• ½ tsp dried oregano
• ½ tsp dried marjoram
• ¼ - ½ tsp salt
• 1 tbsp Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 4-5 tbsp red wine vinegar
• Sprinkling of ground black pepper
• 300g lean lamb leg steaks, trimmed of any fat and cut into chunks

To accompany the lamb you could have 200g new potatoes or 55g dried couscous.  I quickly roasted off some chopped vegetables (see previous blog entry for Couscous & Vegetable recipe) in 1sp olive oil and some seasoning to accompany.  I was lucky enough to get a doggy bag of mum's couscous too so all in all Monday nights supper came together without much effort at all!

WeightWatchers ProPoints Lamb per serving: 8