This great side dish is from the Gourmet Magazine of September 2002. And it will be around at least another 20 years, no doubt. Roasted tomatoes and garlic added to pearl couscous and herbs, with a dressing made from blending some of the tomatoes and garlic in a blender. It takes awhile for the roasting, so you need to plan ahead, but its pretty easy to put together. Great to take to a picnic or a potluck. You can make everything a day ahead and refrigerate separately, bringing them to room temperature and tossing them together close to serving time.
Tomatoes and Dressing
2 pints (1 1/2 pounds) grape or cherry tomatoes
3 large garlic cloves, left unpeeled
1/4 cup olive oil, plus more for tomatoes
1/4 cup warm water
1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
1 tsp. kosher salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
Couscous
2 3/4 cups vegetable broth
2 1/4 cups (12 ounces or 340 grams)pearl couscous, sometimes sold as Israeli couscous
1/2 cup Kalamata or other brine-cured black olives, pitted and chopped
1/3 cup chopped fresh mint
1 tsp. chopped fresh thyme
Prepare tomatoes: Heat the oven to 300 degrees F. Halve tomatoes through stem ends and arrange, cut sides up, in 1 layer on a large baking sheet. Add garlic to pan and drizzle both tomatoes and garlic lightly with oil (about 1 Tbs.) Sprinkle with salt. Roast in middle of oven until tomatoes are slightly shriveled around the edges, about one hour. Cool in pan on a rack 20 to 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, make couscous: Bring broth to a boil in a 3-quart heavy saucepan and stir in couscous, then simmer, uncovered, 6 minutes. Cover pan and remove from heat. Let stand 10 minutes. Spread couscous in one layer on a baking sheet or plate and cool 15 minutes.
When tomatoes are done, make dressing: Peel garlic cloves and puree with 1/4 cup oil, water, lemon juice, 1 tsp. salt, 1/4 tsp. pepper, and 1/2 cup roasted tomatoes in a blender until dressing is very smooth. Adjust seasonings to taste.
Assemble and serve: Transfer cooled couscous to a bowl and stir in olives, roasted tomatoes, herbs, and dressing. Season to taste with more salt and pepper as needed. Serves 6.
Note: Make sure your garlic cloves are large, or they might burn. Might be just me, but I found the mint distracting. Tried basil instead and that seemed more of a fit. I used chicken broth instead of vegetable and that worked fine.
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