Marcus Meals: Quick Chicken Couscous

We've run the gamut of fun mommy-made meals. For the past few days Marcus has been devouring turkey hot dogs, pasta wheels with marinara sauce, and bananas. That has to change. I know I've got to expand his little taste buds now, while he's willing to actually take a bite of something new.

The cookbook where I discovered cheesy pasta has some really unique food and flavor combos. When I came across a chicken couscous dish I immediately knew I needed to try it. Some of the recipes call for things I may not have necessarily ever tried, or thought to try with Marcus. So, some of these meals may be more of an experiment to see if I like them too.

 I did a little taste test and this stuff is good! Don't be surprised if you see a more "grown up" version of this one of these days.

Quick Chicken Couscous

1 Tbsp butter
2/3 cup leeks, white part only, washed and finely chopped (I left these out and substituted 2 Tbsp chopped white onions)
2 oz boneless, skinless chicken breast, diced
1/4 cup carrots peeled and diced
1 cup unsalted chicken broth
1/2 cup couscous

Warm butter in a pan, add leeks (if you're using them). Saute for 5 minutes or until softened.
Add chicken and saute until cooked through.
If you use onion rather than leeks - with about a minute left to cook chicken add onion in with chicken.
Meanwhile, place carrots in a steamer, or in a saucepan  with enough boiling water to cover them, cook until tender, about 10 minutes.
Bring the broth to a boil in a pan.
Stir couscous into broth, remove from heat.
Cover and leave for 5 minutes, or until broth is absorbed.
Fluff couscous with a fork and stir in chicken and vegetables.
Add extra water or broth if necessary.

If you've never had couscous don't back away. It reminded me a lot of rice. Really small rice. The broth gives the couscous a little flavor that I'm sure it would lack if you used water.

Marcus enjoys this stuff. Maybe not as much as the cheesy pasta, but hey, he eats it. That's a win in my book!

Here is fair warning... If your little one is anything like mine and doesn't want your help when eating, you can expect a bit of a mess when this mealtime is done. We may or may not have had couscous everywhere...

Source: Adapted - Karmel, Annabel. First Meals: Fast, Healthy and Fun Foods for Infants and Toddlers. New York: DK Publishing, 1999. Print.