I made this recipe up and I, therefore, am as awesome as I have always said I am.

Taste the genius. Taste the super genius.

However: when you get right down to it, very few recipes are actually original. Recipes are mostly derivative, right? Doncha think? For example: calzone is a pizza derivative; pancakes are a cake derivative (or vice versa, not sure yet); ravioli is a lasagne derivative; sandwiches are calzone derivatives — and so we are all connected in the delicious circle of life [citation needed].

That’s just a little diversion for ya. A little philosophy to help you ease in to the awesome stupendo-genius of my couscous.

Hail to the awesome, baby peppers!

Baby capsicums were abundant at the farmers’ markets on the weekend: I bought many. Tonight, we roast! If I could rebuild the food pyramid (and I hear they have), roast capsicum would definitely get a category all of its own. (So would hummus.)

Baked in the glow of awesome

Enough chit-chat! Here’s how to make Super Genius Awesome Couscous! Quantities are pretty flexible: go with what feels right.

What You Need:

• 6 baby capsicums
• 1 large zucchini, roughly chopped
• 1 small eggplant, roughly chopped
• 1 large brown onion, finely chopped
• 1 medium-sized tomato, roughly chopped
• 4 cloves of garlic (roasted is best, if you’ve got the inclination), finely chopped
• Olive oil
• ½ cup dried couscous
• 1 cup water
• Splash of white wine
• Chilli flakes
• Cumin seeds
• Salt and pepper

What You Do:

1. Drizzle the baby capsicums with olive oil and put them in the oven at about 200°C to roast. They’ll need about fifteen to twenty minutes, depending on how big they are.
2. Meanwhile, heat some olive oil in a deep saucepan: add the onion and garlic and fry until they start to go golden, then add the zucchini and eggplant. Keep frying! Add the chilli flakes and cumin seeds, and a generous dash of salt; keep frying, stirring frequently, until they start to soften. Once they start to brown, add the tomato and the dry couscous and stir quickly. Deglaze with a splash of white wine, then add the water. Put a lid on that sucker and turn the heat off.
3. Check the capsicums. They’re probably fine. You want them slightly shrivelled, a little blistery on the outside, but not black.
4. Don’t take the lid off the saucepan! Keep it there for at least fifteen minutes to steam the couscous.
5. Take the capsicums out of the oven; the couscous should be plump and soft by now, mingled with all those awesome rockstar veggies.
6. Time to serve.
7. Why are you still here? Go eat!

Et voila:

Can you smell the awesome?

This is seriously good eatin’. Serve with cracked pepper. If you were feeling particularly saucy, you could throw in some chickpeas or grilled haloumi, but this dish stands alone.