Thursday, April 3, 2014

C is for Cuckoo and Caakiri

C
The cuckoo is to English spring as the Robin is to North America. The call of the Common Cuckoocuckoo heard over the hills and dales of the English countryside is a welcome sound each year. You can hear it here. I didn’t realise, before writing this, that the cuckoo family is spread widely turning up in many parts of the world and apparently the bird with which I am familiar is the Common Cuckoo. It is a bird parasite because it lays its eggs in the nests of other species. Here again, there are many cuckoos which do not do this, silly me I thought it was a feature of cuckoos. After all that is where the word cuckold came from. Translation: a man who’s wife produces another man’s child. These days I guess that can happen with surrogates, but cuckold is an old fashioned word. We saw a whole flock of cuckoos in our North Carolina back yard once, they devastated a plant which was full of bugs, and then we never saw them again although the bugs came back. I don't ever remember actually seeing a cuckoo in England.

Here’s an interesting sounding pudding from Food.com. It has its origins in Africa. I like couscous so will definitely try this one.
 

Caakiri (Couscous Pudding)

By Random Rachel
Photo
Photo by Annacia
 
  • Servings: 4

 

"A simple couscous pudding. Makes 4 - 1 cup servings. From congocooking.com"
 

Ingredients

    • 2 cups couscous
    • 1 cup evaporated milk
    • 2 cups yogurt (plain or vanilla)
    • 1 cup sour cream
    • 1/2 cup sugar
    • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
    • 1 dash nutmeg (optional)
    • raisins or crushed pineapple or mint ( to garnish)

Directions

  1. Prepare 2 cups of couscous according to package directions and allow to cool.
  2. Combine evaporated milk, yogurt, sour cream, sugar, and vanilla. Stir yogurt mixture into couscous.
  3. Add more sugar, to taste. Garnish as desired. Serve warm or chilled.
Have a great day
Jo (2)

31 comments:

  1. I am cuckoo for couscous! I wish that I had known to be on the lookout for cuckoo birds when we visited our son in North Carolina last spring.

    Julie

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  2. We can find lot of cuckoo in india , specially near paddy fields . And Jo - The pudding looks delicious :) got to try it soon!

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  3. Hi Jo - the cuckoo is a rare bird now - they're trying to track them to see where they go and what is happening to their habitat ... sad - they're not as ubiquitous as they once were.

    Now that pud - sounds quite wonderful ... I'm a fan of evaporated milk, though I rarely have it now ... if I had family I'd try it ..

    Cheers Hilary

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    1. I am sorry to hear that. It was such a symbol of spring. Although maybe the birds where they left their eggs won't be unhappy.

      Pity you can't make it. Have a dinner party maybe?

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  4. That is cool. I am actually in SC.

    The pudding sounds great I will have to try it.

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    1. Have you seen the cuckoo in SC?

      I haven't yet, but it does sound good.

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  5. We hear them sometimes. That's the bird whose chick pushes the other baby chicks out of the nest, isn't it?

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    1. It sure does Diane. I only remember seeing them in a flock that one time. Certainly don't remember hearing them.

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  6. Funny that you never saw a cuckoo in England. Our township bird used to be the meadowlark, which no one had ever seen. You cannot imagine the uproar I caused when I convinced out Board to adopt the chickadee as our Twp. bird. Something that is here in abundance and kids can actually see.

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    1. Sounds like there is even less chance seeing a cuckoo in the UK now.

      Chickadee was a good idea, see them, and hear them, everywhere. W.C. Fields like the Chickadee LOL

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  7. A to Z visit returned :-) Mostly we have wood pigeons here.
    Lisa at Wishbone Soup Cures Everything

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  8. I like to hear them too. I cannot imagine England without cuckoos.

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  9. I wonder if the sound a cuckoo clock makes is the same?

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    1. Did you use the link I provided to listen to the sound a cuckoo makes?

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  10. Now that's interesting. I'm still learning about couscous, making basic dishes really, so I didn't realise one could do pudding with it too. What's the pudding taste like ( as in, what do you like about it?)

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    1. I haven't actually made it yet but it's on my to do list.

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  11. I wonder if that would be a lot like rice pudding? Probably, eh?

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    1. I think it would be very like rice pudding.

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  12. Such an interesting bird! Large and sneaky too!

    Not into pudding.

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    1. Not sneaky enough if they are disappearing in the UK.

      Not any kind of pudding?

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  13. I've never had couscous. The recipe sounds delicious.

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  14. I love learning the origin of words. No idea that cuckoos and being cheated on fit together...very interesting.
    Don't do pudding...but wow lady, I do dig you. Everywhere I go, you've been there before me! Way to be out visiting!
    Tina @ Life is Good
    A to Z Team @ Blogging From A to Z April Challenge 2014

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    1. Thanks boss, I am somewhat exhausted I must admit. It was a bowling day so I had to get out there early.

      I like word origins too.

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  15. Wow! Didn't know you could use couscous in pudding! Cool!!

    morgankatz505.blogspot.com

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  16. Impressed that you choose to not to major on Chocolate today! I love couscous but had never thought about using it in a pudding before, something new to try!

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    1. I post enough chocolate recipes to not do so. Yes, this is somewhat different.

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