- 1 acorn squash or similar
- maple syrup
- olive oil
- 1 sweet onion, sliced
- 2 Portabello mushrooms, sliced
- 1 3/4 cups of Israeli couscous mix
- 1 Tbsp butter
- 1 bunch of kale
- goat or feta cheese
- lemon juice
First order of business is to warm up the oven to 375ºF / 190ºC, cut the squash into thick slices (quarter inch / half-centimeter), toss them with olive oil and maple syrup, and arrange on a baking sheet. The squash will take 30-40 minutes to cook and get browned and crispy on the bottom.
Next, start sautéing the onion in oil on low flame. Once it is soft, add the mushrooms. After they are ready, you can keep the vegetables on low heat until serving the dishes. The original recipe did not have any vegetables, but we wanted to add extra bulk and flavor.
Once the onion is sizzling, start boiling the water for the couscous. We just followed the directions on our Israeli Couscous mix from Trader Joe's, mixing in butter and the dry ingredients into boiling water, and simmering it for 10 minutes. Again, the Food52 recipe did not have any extra starch, but we wanted to make a main course, so something like couscous or farro or spelt seemed necessary. It mixed wonderfully with the vegetables and the dressing.
Once everything is ready, place the above ingredients, hopefully still hot, on top of kale. (To be fair, mustard greens are a better choice for fresh greenery here.) Top the dish with goat cheese or feta and sprinkle the dressing: olive oil, lemon juice, and - in our case - some sweet vinaigrette.