Easy Cumin Couscous with Sautéed Tomatoes

Hello friends. Hope your weekend is off to a good start! As far as food goes, this recipe isn't for the faint of heart. It has a lot of flavor.  It supposedly "raised the roof of Ken's mouth" (direct quote from Ken). :) 

I didn't grow up on couscous. Soy sauce, rice, meat and taters were staples at our house. China meets all-American is what Bobby Flay would "throw down" if he were our personal chef...in our dreams! Both of my parents and my grandma are excellent cooks which may be where I developed a love for cooking. 

Because I struggled with my health through college, it was hard to hold a job. So during the summers I'd have dinner ready for my parents when they got home. It was a great experience. I made mistakes, and still do. Although I wish I could have been working, I'm glad I had the opportunity to learn more about cooking during that time!

My dad encouraged us to try non-traditional food. "Don't knock it til you try it" was the motto. I'm glad he pushed us to try things we normally wouldn't. I have had couscous prior to this recipe but couldn't remember what it tasted like. I saw some raw couscous in our pantry and thought, why not try it again? If couscous is a "non-traditional" food for you, give the grain a fighting chance  or enjoy a different version of it with the recipe below! 

Easy Cumin Couscous with Sautéed Tomatoes

INGREDIENTS

For the Couscous

1 cup couscous 

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 teaspoon salt 

1/2 teaspoon garlic salt 

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon cumin

Sour Cream (optional)
Parsley finely chopped (optional)

For the Tomatoes

12-15 cherry tomatoes (halved)

1/2 tablespoon olive oil

INSTRUCTIONS

•    Prepare couscous according to package 

•    Add olive oil to couscous and stir so that no couscous is sticking to the pot 

•    Gently stir the next 4 ingredients into the couscous

•    In a small pan heat olive oil on medium-high heat 

•    Place tomato halves in heated pan 

•    Sautee tomatoes until tender (about 5 minutes) They should turn a darker shade of red and the

    edges will brown.  

•    Add the cooked tomatoes to couscous and stir until well combined (it is fine if you add the oil from

    the tomatoes to the couscous as well-it gives the dish a better texture

    Sprinkle couscous with parsley and serve with a dollop of sour cream. Enjoy! 

If you have any questions about the recipe, leave me a comment and I'll do my best to help! 

Blessings! 

-Robin 

10 Gluten Free Coupons and Newsletters

When I started this journey to find out what was wrong with my health I made several changes in my diet...including cutting gluten. I don't have celiacs but I feel horrible when I have too much gluten. So I'd say it's a "gluten intolerance". My Lyme doctor is hard core on diet. No gluten, dairy, eggs, soy, alcohol, etc  Side note: cigarettes are horrible for you in general, but even more so with Lyme. If you're a Lymie, avoid them! 

Although I don't follow a strenuous diet any more I still try to avoid gluten. Ken is a big, 6'6" eater and I'm a GF eater. This takes a toll on our grocery bill. You may have a similar situation. Here are some coupons and newsletters that will get us on our way to saving money on GF items!

1. Glutino

Every time we've bought glutino there's been a $1.00 off coupon enclosed for our next glutino purchase! Many mainstream grocery stores carry this brand- as opposed to some brands that you have to purchase online or at a specialty store. Out of all the glutino foods I've tried I'd have to say the garlic chips are my fave. Grab your coupon! 

2. Ian's

I think I've had Ian's once and it was yummy. They offer frozen foods like chicken nuggets that would be great for kid's lunches. When you visit this site “like” their FB page and you'll get the coupon. 

 3. Bob's Red Mill

Bobby throws down GF like a boss! The cornbread mix is great. Sign up for offers! 

4. Krusteaz

I've used the Krusteaz GF all purpose flour. Food made with this flour doesn't taste that much different than regular flour foods! 

5. Enjoy Life Foods

Can't wait to try these "Plentils"! Enjoy the special offers! 

6. Schar

Use Schar's "Coupon Rocker" (<-----love this name!) to get great GF coupons! 

7. Udi's

I love Udi's! And these snicker doodle cookies sound SO tempting. Get the coupon when you click the link above and then more offers when you sign up for their newsletter. 

8. Van's Foods

I've tried Van's GF waffles and they're tasty. Might have to give these pancakes a try! Sign up and enjoy. 

9. Rudi's Bakery

Not too familiar with Rudi's but I was thrilled to see that they offer tortillas. It's always hard to find GF flatbread to wrap up yummy food. Gotta find these! I'll be using this coupon right along with you. 

10. Freschetta

Ok. I had to put this glorious pizza in the line up. I try to stay away from dairy but on occasion I splurge for this pie. Ken will even sneak a piece...because it's that good! Don't eat this if you're lactose intolerant. If you are just GF then I doubt you'll regret this purchase! 

I hope you found this list helpful. You will find loads of recipes through these links as well. Most sites let you reprint the coupons after some time passes. What GF brands do you like? Are there coupons?! 

Happy GF eating! 

Robin 

Best Thoughts During Construction

Under Construction

After ordering new business cards for our Etsy shop I got inspired to freshen up my blog (and start blogging again!). I didn't want to pay so I whipped something up myself. It's still "under construction" and I have lots to learn from other bloggers (like adding all of those cool, sparkly "pin it" buttons). You can "follow me" on Pinterest here. I have a board named "blogging and business". You'll find some awesome blog tips through this board. Hope you are inspired by my other boards as well!

Best Thoughts

While I'm in the middle of working on my blog design and coordinating it with Etsy and FB I thought I'd share some cards. We are working on a large order and I'll be sharing some of the cards for the order. If you see something you like, visit our Etsy Shop to place an order!

I used the Best Thoughts set from the new Stampin' Up! catalog. I colored the flower and added lots of sparkles of course!

I hope you were inspired to create and also to keep working toward you goals...even if you have to take a long break. If you have advice on blog design I welcome it! Especially how to design a cool signature for the end of a blog post. :) 

Lots of love,

Robin 

Fresh Wreath Birthday Card

This weekend was better than most. My health left me very tired but I was able to help with some cleaning-which doesn't happen very much. Ken does the cleaning and says he doesn't mind. Rare quality in a guy! Thankful that he's willing to clean but can't wait for the day when I can do at least half of the work. I'm kind of a clean freak! 

Ken and I went over to mom and dad's tonight for dinner. Mom made homemade GF sesame chicken,  rice, and a cranberry apple salad with an amazing vinaigrette! She can really throw it down in the kitchen! 

Lymie Pinterest finds:

Made me laugh

Hope

Because of Jesus there is always hope! "He gives and takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord."

Freshly Made Sketch:

I made this birthday card with inspiration from Freshly Made Sketches. I hadn't used the Wondrous Wreath set so I thought I'd try it out on this card. 

I love that this stamp set can be used for different occasions, not just Christmas! 

I'm thankful that I was able to do some stamping over the weekend (mostly to fill Etsy orders). I plan on featuring different cards from our Etsy shop on the blog! You can find our store by clicking the link at the top right of the home page. But here's the link if you want instant access :) TRC Etsy Shop.

Have a "wondrous" Monday!

*Robin