I came up with this dish when thinking of how to incorporate some simanim as well as fall vegetables like beets, carrots and parsnips into the Rosh Hashana meal. These root vegetables complement each other really well, and the addition of honey and thyme really rounds out the dish. If you’d like, you can leave out the couscous altogether, but I like the texture and how it turns purple from the beets. In fact, my kids call this “purple couscous” and they eat it by the bowlful.
This salad incorporates 3 simanim, beets, carrots, and honey. Serve it with fish or meat.
>Beets are called Silka, which is similar to Siluk, meaning removal. We ask Hashem that our adversaries be removed.
>Carrots have a dual meaning. In Yiddish, they are called Meren, meaning to increase. We ask Hashem to increase our merits.
>In Hebrew, carrots are Gezer, meaning decree. We ask Hashem to judge us positively.
>Honey (as well as carrots) is eaten because of its sweetness. We ask Hashem to bless us with a sweet new year.
Couscous with Tyme & Honey Roasted Carrots, Parsnips and Beets
2 cups Israeli couscous
olive oil
3 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1 tsp salt
2 carrots, diced
2 parsnips, diced (woody core removed, if desired)
2 beets, diced
olive oil
honey
thyme (fresh sprigs or dried)
freshly ground black pepper
kosher salt
Dressing:
2 tbsp honey
3 tbsp orange juice
3 tbsp light olive oil
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 heaping tbsp orange marmalade
1/4 tsp dried thyme
salt, to taste
pepper, to taste
Method:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a sheet pan, drizzle beets, parsnips and carrots with olive oil, honey, thyme, kosher salt, and pepper. Roast in the oven for 30-45 minutes, until tender and browned around the edges.
For the couscous, add a drizzle of oil to a pan and toast until browned. In a separate pot, boil stock with salt added. Pour stock into pan with couscous and simmer for 8 minutes. Cool.
For the dressing, whisk or blend in a food processor until emulsified.
To prepare, add vegetables to cooled couscous (make sure it’s cool otherwise it will absorb all the dressing) and pour dressing over right before serving. Garnish with fresh thyme.
Looks delicious!
This is gorgeous! Love it. I thought I had my menu all planned out, but I may have to add this . . .
I was going to make red quinoa–I wonder if this would work with that.
Shana Tova!!
What a lovely and colorful dish. I just love how it incorporates all those simanim.
I made this dressing for red quinoa and it was delicious.
Do you think I could substitute Quinoa instead of Couscous for passover use?
Yes, I think it would work nicely with this recipe.
Hi do you think I can make this in advance? How would I store it until I serve it?
You can, but I would probably assemble it an hour or two before serving. If you dress it in advance, I think the couscous would soak up all the dressing and become a bit dry. (note that I havent made this recipe since I tested it, about 5 years ago, so I am going by memory here!)