Ilse's Kitchen - culinary adventures of a girl who loves to eat

When I visited the Turkish store yesterday, I was looking for Israeli couscous (also known as pearl couscous). Instead, the shop owner gave me a package of tiny pearl-shaped pasta called acini di pepe. The shopkeeper convinced me that it was just the same, and that this was what his family used when they couldn’t find pearl couscous. That they were pretty much interchangeable. I was sceptical, but decided to trust him - and it turns out he’s pretty much right. They are very, very similar. The reason I was looking for pearl couscous, is because I had some merguez sausage and wanted to make this recipe from OhMyFoodness. Glad I did :) Ingredients (serves 2): 100g acini di pepe or Israeli (pearl) couscous 400g chopped tomatoes 1 purple onion, chopped 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped 1 tablespoon ras el hanout spices merguez sausage for 2 handful flat-leafed parsley 2 eggs Instructions: 1. Boil the acini di pepe or couscous according to the instructions on the package - 10...

It might have been in the name, but when I first picked up some merguez sausages I expected them to be Spanish. As it turns out, they're a spicy North African variety that comes in beef or lamb, and is often eaten with couscous or used in tajines. I'd bought beef, intending to use them for quesadillas. Figuring there was no reason not to continue along this original train of thought, I did, and I wasn't sorry. The spiciness makes a great combo with the goat cheese and cilantro. Ingredients (serves 2): 300g Merguez sausage (I used beef, but you can also go for lamb) 100g goat's cheese (I used chevre, sliced and tough white outside removed) 3 medium-size shallots, chopped few sprigs coriander (cilantro), chopped 6 flour tortillas (I used the 'gordita' type, which is a bit smaller and thicker than the tortillas used for burritos) 1 lime cut into wedges Mexican salsa roja ( click here for the recipe ) Instructions: 1. Place the merguez sausages in ...