Saffron couscous with chicken and veggies

 

I see the light at the end of the tunnel. Temperatures have been higher in the past few days and it looks like tomorrow we might break 40. What a dream. The thing is, I have all these really cute spring clothes I want to wear, but the weather hasn't really been warm enough for any of them. And that's not the only problem. I had also gained some weight in the past few months, which made my clothes fit horribly, if they fit at all. Now I'm 7 pounds down and things are looking brighter. Another 5-7 pounds and I'll look and feel great, ready for warmer days and lighter clothes.

This is one of my "diet" recipes. One of the things that is helping me lose weight is packing my own lunch, so I don't end up eating huge sandwiches or pizza at some restaurant. Hence the tupperware in the photo. Sorry if it doesn't look great, but I swear it tasted really good!

SAFFRON COUSCOUS

For 1:

1/2 cup couscous

1 packet saffron

1 chicken breast, cut into pieces

 1 cup frozen peas, thawed

1 carrot, minced

1 small onion, minced

Salt and pepper

Evoo

Cook couscous according to directions, adding saffron to the water.

In a small skillet heta up a little olive oil. Add carrot, onion and peas, cook for a minute. Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper, then add to skillet and cook with veggies until browned.

Fluff couscous with a fork, add to skillet, mix well and serve.

Farro with porcini mushrooms and pancetta

Day 2 of spring. While the weather gets better and better, I'm sorry to report that my allergies have completely taken over my life. Last night my eyes got so puffy I couldn't even put in my contacts this morning. So on top of the general feeling of discomfort that has affected me for the past few days, I am now also blind as a bat. Ok. That's a slight exaggeration since I'm only -1.50 on each eye, but still. When you are used to wearing contacts and seeing perfectly, not being able to do either thing drives you insane. And before you all tell me to wear my glasses instead, here's a dirty little secret about me: I never bought them because, I figured, why have glasses when contacts are so much better? Sheer genius, I know.

Anyway, the point is I needed some comfort food to make me smile after a whole day of sneezing every ten seconds, so I decided why not farro? It's easy, it's cheap and it's good for you. Farro is one of the most ancient cereals known to men and it's a staple in many central and southern Italian regional cuisines —it's also low in fat and sugars and high in fiber, which are only some of the reasons why I've been preparing it so often lately. It also happens to be cheap, not to mention the fact that is good cold, hot, prepared as a dry dish or in soups. Seriously, what's not to like?

Last night I decided to make it warm, with porcini, pancetta and roasted pinenuts —mostly because I had all the ingredients on hand and the recipe on the Barilla farro box sounded really yummy. I'm usually not one to make recipes found on boxes, but let me tell you: this one was delicious. And comforting. And easy. It was all that I needed after the sneeze-fest that was my day yesterday.

FARRO WITH PORCINI AND PANCETTA

Serves 4

9 ounces quick-cooking farro
2 ounces dried porcini mushrooms
4 ounces minced pancetta or bacon
2 ounces pinenuts
1 small red onion, minced
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
EVOO
salt and pepper

Get porcini ready by soaking them in warm water for about 20 minutes and then shopping them. Warm up olive oil in a large skillet, add pancetta, porcini and onion and sautee for a couple of minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Toast pine nuts by cooking them on high in the microwave for 4 minutes.

Cook the farro in abundant salted water, drain and add to the skillet with other ingredients. Sautee for a minute, stirring constantly. Top with roasted pine nuts and serve.