Moroccan Squash and Chickpea Tagine Recipe

1. Start by toasting the coriander seeds and cinnamon sticks in the tagine (or saucepan) over a low heat. Once they have started to give off their delicious aroma, take them off the heat and grind using a pestle and mortar (or a coffee grinder, but not the one you use for coffee as it will change the flavour of your drink, have a seperate one for spices).
2. Fry the onion, garlic, ginger, chili, ground spices and turmeric in 1 tbsp of olive oil.
3. Use a food processor to puree the spinach and the dates.
4. When the onions have browned, add the squash, chickpeas, tomatoes, spinach and dates to the tagine (or saucepan). Add enough liquid to make sure that all the squash is covered. Make sure the heat is turned down low, put on the lid, and simmer for 40 minutes.
5. While you're waiting for the tagine to cook, make the couscous by adding dry couscous to hot vegetable stock and covering for 5 minutes. Once the couscous is soft, separate out the grains with a fork to make it fluffy, and stir in the flaked almonds, olive oil and coriander.
6. Once the squash is cooked and tender, add the coriander and then serve the tagine with almond couscous that you prepared in step 5.

Remember the tagine is a dish to be presented nicely... take your time putting the ingredients into the dish.