How to Make My Favorite Quick, Healthy, Sheet Pan Dinner! Roasted Veggies with Chickpeas & Couscous!

This is so yummy, even my kids love it! This is actually a wonderful lunch or brunch dish, or even a side dish. 💕

In this time of Covid, I need to add some healthy dishes to my repertoire! 

The Holidays are coming, people!! So we need to start eating healthy.. now!

This dish is the answer! It's healthy with tons of vegetables, and it's quick and tasty!

I love roasted vegetables. If you have never roasted vegetables before in the oven, with olive oil and spices, you need to start today! Even Brussels sprouts are eaten in my family if I roast them. 😁

Roasting caramelizes the natural sugars in the vegetables and enhances their sweetness. It gives the vegetables a nutty, toasty flavor.

The great thing about this recipe is that there are just a couple more easy steps after roasting the vegetables, and the meal is done! 

I add chickpeas, also called garbanzo beans, to add some good, low-fat protein to the dish. So this is a great vegetarian dish for your friends or family...or you! However, feel free to add chicken or beef if you prefer a dish with meat. Cutting up a rotisserie chicken and adding it to the dish at the end would be a great way to add more protein. 

Ingredients:

- 4+ Cups of cut-up veggies. See below for the veggies that I used in this dish.

- One 15 oz can of chickpeas or garbanzo beans, drained.

- 2 tablespoons of Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)

- 1 cup of couscous, uncooked.

- 1 1/4 cups to 1 1/2 cups of chicken stock or vegetable stock, boiling.

- Spices such as salt, pepper, garlic, cumin, smoked paprika, Cayenne pepper, etc.

- Garnishes such as chopped parsley, thyme, or cilantro.

So Let's get started!

The Recipe:

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. My oven runs hot, so I cook this dish at 400 degrees. However, you can increase the temperature to 425 degrees if you want to reduce the cooking time.

2. Cut up 4 cups of vegetables (or more) into similar sizes for equal cooking times. Spread the vegetables out onto a parchment-lined (or greased) sheet pan. Do not overcrowd. 

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I used: broccoli, cauliflower, cute multicolored carrots, Brussels sprouts, one white onion, butternut squash (root vegetable), and yellow/green zucchini. 

For convenience, I bought most of the vegetables cut-up from the grocery store. I still needed to cut them smaller, but I did not have to wash them or do any initial prep. It is more expensive, but if you are short on time, this is a lifesaver. 😅

You can use almost any vegetable. I love mushrooms, asparagus, green or red peppers, etc. *If you are using root vegetables like butternut squash or sweet potatoes, cut them smaller than the other vegetables since they take longer to cook. I cut my butternut squash into 1 by 1 1/2 inch rectangles. Or you can put the root veggies in the oven first for about 10 minutes, and then add the rest of the vegetables.

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Veggies out of the package.

Veggies cut into smaller pieces.

3. Pour EVOO over the vegetables and season with spices. Be conservative; you can always add more spices later. However, I always add tons of garlic powder. Then add garbanzo beans and mix everything together with clean hands or a spatula. Spread the veggies out again on the sheet pan.

Add EVOO, and spices.

Add chickpeas also called garbanzo beans.

4. Put into a 400-degree oven for 25 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender and caramelized and a little crispy.

5. Take the veggies out of the oven, and put them on the counter.

Boil 1 1/2 cups of chicken stock in the microwave.

6. Pour one cup of couscous over the veggies.

Then slowly pour the 1 1/2 cups of chicken stock over the veggies and couscous.

7. Cover the pan tightly with foil and wait 10 minutes.

Note: I first saw this method on The Kitchen on The Food Network. I love them!😀

8. Uncover and fluff with a fork. If it still looks a little wet, recover with foil, and let it sit for 5 more minutes. Taste and add more seasonings if necessary.

I accidentally added more Cayenne pepper instead of smoked paprika. 😳 It was a little hot! But I added more salt, which helped balance out the dish. Double-check your labels on your spices, and be sure to taste it before you serve it!!

Serve in the sheet pan, or if you are fancier, put in a serving dish, or individual bowls. Add cilantro, thyme, and/or parsley for garnish.

I make this dish a couple of times a month since it is so easy and versatile.

This is also a good dish to serve in a bowl; especially on a cold night.

I hope you enjoy it!

Bon appétit!! 🍁🍂