Mediterranean Culture

Greek Panzanella

First potluck culture of the year I really stepped my game up and put this dish on the table.  People were really impressed.

Ingredients:
slab of French bread
olive oil
large cucumber
red bell pepper
yellow bell pepper
1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes halved
red onion
1/2 pound feta
1 cup olives
dressing:
ton of garlic
dried oregano
dijon mustard
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
salt, pepper
1/2 cup olive oil

First slice up the bread into medium sized cubes drizzle with olive oil and salt and saute in pan until becomes golden brown. Set aside.  Chop up all the veggies into bite size pieces and put in large bowl.  Whisk together olive oil, vinegar, garlic, oregano and mustard in another bowl. Add salt and pepper. Pour dressing over veggies and mix thoroughly. Add bread and crumble in feta.  Mix more.  Let sit room temperature for half hour.

The longer you let this sit, the more everything gets soaked up and better it tastes.  Kent only eats panzanella if its a day old.


WAAAY TOO MUCH COUS COUS (or "cosktsi" as they say on the Med/wherever Arabic is spoken)

Make sure you make enough to feed everyone on the Mediterranean. What with the political turmoil & tough times& all, they could really use some extra cous cous...

A shit ton of cous cous
eggplant and/or squash/zucchini
chickpeas or fava beans
edamame
garlic
onion
peppers
mushrooms?
spinach/kale
just about any veggies you can think of
chili/cayenne 
harissa - a spicy North African paste made of crushed chilis and olive oil - you can find it @ natural food stores or many int'l food sections of grocery stores (tomato paste/sauce and any hot sauce you like works too, just spice it up)

Saute all your vegs first while the never-ending pot of cous cous is cooking up. Traditionally, the cous cous is cooked in a makful ("mock-fool"), a ceramic pot with the cous cous cooking in a level on top of the sauce, kind of like a double-boiler, so all the spices soak into the grains). If your makful is dirty, just cook whatever spices/sauces you want on the side & stir 'em in, but make sure it's not some bland plain boring cous cous with no sauce/spice mixed in or you'll be on potluck probation (ie. banned from the next potluck but required to make a dish that knocks our socks off or you'll never be invited back). 

I actually really don't remember what went into this particular cous cous as it was many moons ago (there may have been some master veggie sauce or carrot cayenne hot sauce in there?). Just throw whatever veggies are in season/in your fridge and sauce it up. Dry cous cous is bullshit. Remember to make enough so you'll be eating it for weeks. Leftover cous cous is great in tacos&burritos!