So....

This isn't a food blog quite yet. We certainly cook enough and eat out enough to fuel a true food blog, but there are people out there who do it much better than I could, and so I'm happy just to share bits and pieces of our culinary adventures from time to time.

Like tonight, for example. Tomorrow is officially our 5th year "dating" anniversary. We don't usually celebrate this anniversary (our wedding anniversary suffices, thanks), but since it's 5 years, we think this one's special. (In fact, since we officially got together at the company Christmas party 5 years ago, we think it's rather funny that tomorrow is also the same company's Christmas party...hence we're celebrating tonight, but I digress....) So tonight we opened up a nice bottle of wine and I cooked something grander than our usual mid-week fare: Spiced Lamb and Onion Couscous from Donna Hay's "New Food Fast."

I don't quite know why we don't cook more often from this book, but we certainly need to in the future. The premise of the recipe is that it takes "30 minutes" (as opposed to 10 or 20 minutes - the other two chapters in the book), which is pretty much right on the money. It's basically a slightly more elaborate version of lamb steaks and couscous: the lamb is covered in cumin, paprika, and chili powder then pan fried; the couscous is tossed with browned onions and thyme, then mixed with fresh arugula before serving. I violated my own rule and messed with the recipe a bit even though it was the first time we made the dish, using clarified butter to saute the onions and to pan-fry the lamb, and adding extra salt to the spices and to the onions, but it was outstanding. And honestly? It took about 30 minutes to make, which is totally do-able on a daily basis.

So YUM. And Happy Anniversary, M. If you want the recipe, give me a shout.