Chicken and Vegetable Tagine with Garlic Currant Couscous

I became interested in cooking tagines a few years ago, while making a northern African inspired meal for a belly-dancing event at the Feathered Pipe Ranch. Tagines are braised stews of spiced meats and vegetables found in Morocco. They receive their name from the clay pot they are cooked in, which consists of a wide shallow bottom dish and a conical cover. A close friend gave me a tagine a few years ago, but alas it is in storage so I made do with a Dutch oven. Beet and tangerine salad or arugula and orange salad are bright citrus additions to a tagine.

Larger golden beets will work as well; I would not use red beets, as they will dye the entire dish. Additional carrots, squash or turnips may be used instead of beets. Water could substitute for wine. If you are using a tagine pot, the braising portion of the recipe would happen in the oven after being readied on the range.

Chicken and Vegetable Tagine

1 lb chicken thighs, skinned and boned

1 medium yellow onion, trimmed and chopped

2 medium yukon potatoes, cut into 1 inch cubes

2 medium carrots, peeled and sliced into ½ inch rounds

10 small golden beets, quartered

1 zucchini, trimmed, halved and sliced into ½ inch segments

½ green pepper, trimmed and finely diced

1 tart apple, cut into 1 inch cubes

2 cloves garlic, pressed or chopped

½ c white wine

1 c chicken stock

½ c water

½ tsp cinnamon

1 tbsp honey

1 sprig of thyme

¼ c parsley, roughly chopped

3 tbsp olive oil

salt and pepper

Garlic Currant Couscous

2 c cooked couscous

½ c currants

½ red onion, finely diced

1 clove garlic, pressed or chopped

¼ c parsley, finely chopped

1 tbsp butter

1 tbsp olive oil

salt and pepper

Chicken and Vegetable Tagine

1. Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add chicken and brown both sides, about 4 minutes per side. Remove chicken from Dutch oven, place in a large mixing bowl and set aside.

2. Working in separate batches, brown onions, apples, potatoes, carrots and beets in the Dutch oven over medium heat, placing browned vegetables aside with chicken and adding olive oil to Dutch oven as necessary.

3. Next, combine white wine, cinnamon, honey thyme and garlic to the Dutch oven and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Once simmering, return browned chicken and vegetables to the Dutch oven and bring liquid back to a simmer. Once simmering again, add water and chicken stock, stir to combine. Cover Dutch oven, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes.

4. Add zucchini and green pepper, cover and continue to simmer until tender, about 5 minutes, adding water ¼ c at a time as necessary to maintain cooking liquid.

5. Once all vegetables are tender, add parsley and remove from heat. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve warm over garlic currant couscous.

Garlic Currant Couscous

1. Heat olive oil and butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add onions and sauté until onions begin to brown slightly. Add currants and continue sautéing until currants are soft. Turn heat off, add parsley and garlic and sauté off heat until fragrant, about 1 minute.

2. Combine sautéed ingredients with cooked couscous in a mixing bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Serves 3-4

Acorn Squash Stuffed with Red Quinoa

I grew up eating quinoa, thanks to my whole food roots, and although I was not always fond of it as a child, I have been able to appreciate quinoa again as an adult. Quinoa, from the Andes, is not actually a grain but instead a chenopod, closely related to beets and spinach. Red quinoa is especially nice because it maintains its color after cooking and provides a good contrast to the yellow of the squash. Greens such as mustard green soup, orange pecan kale or walnut lemon chard compliment the sweet flavor of squash.

Other varieties of similarly sized squash could be used. Most fresh herbs may be used in addition to or as a substitute. Any type of quinoa may be used in place of red quinoa.

Dedicated to the lovely Samantha Wren, who joined my sister and I in eating these squash.

1 acorn squash, halved and seeded

1 c cooked red quinoa

1 medium carrot, trimmed and finely diced

½ white onion, trimmed and finely diced

1 stalk celery, trimmed and finely diced

5 button mushrooms, halved and thinly sliced

1 tbsp thyme

1 tbsp sage, finely chopped

1 tbsp olive oil plus more for rubbing squash

salt and pepper

1. Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees. Rub squash halves with olive oil and place in oven. Bake until tender and slightly browned, 30-45 minutes. Remove squash from oven when ready, set aside and leave oven on.

2. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add onion, carrot and celery, sautéing until the onion is translucent. Add mushrooms and continue sautéing vegetables until mushrooms are tender. Turn heat off; add herbs and sauté off heat for another minute or until the herbs are fragrant.

3. Combine cooked red quinoa with the sautéed vegetables in a medium mixing bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

4. Finally, stuff each squash half with red quinoa stuffing and place both stuffed halves in a baking dish. Return the squash to the oven and bake until the red quinoa begins to brown, 10-15 minutes. Serve warm or room temperature.

Serves 2-4

Celeriac Purée

Celeriac seems to be one of the more commonly overlooked root vegetables, which is a shame because it is one of the more delicious roots we eat. I find it to be nice to cook with because it has a creamy texture and a milder celery flavor, so it is an easy replacement for celery in many dishes. Although the exterior may be a bit intimidating, generally celeriac is fairly easy to trim with pairing knives and peelers. Celeriac is also known as celery root or turnip-celery root. Celeriac purée accompanies many other dishes well, including feta roasted potatoes and stuffed bell peppers, due to its rich and creamy celery flavor.

This purée can easily be made vegan by substituting the remaining steaming water and olive oil for the dairy. An immersion blender or regular blender will also work to purée the ingredients together.

1 lb celeriac, peeled and roughly chopped

½ lb carrots, peeled and roughly chopped

1 tbsp butter

½ c whole milk

¼ fresh thyme

salt and pepper

1. Steam celeriac and carrots until soft, 20-30 minutes. Once vegetables are soft, remove from heat and place in a food processor.

2. Next, add butter and milk to the vegetables and purée until mixture is smooth. Add thyme and purée for a few seconds more until combined.

3. Season to taste with salt and pepper. May be served warm or room temperature.

Serves 3-4

Fresh Pickles

I love pickled vegetables, of all varieties, likely due to my northern European heritage. As I tend to err on the side of impatience, I prefer to make fresh pickles instead of actually canning because they are delicious, easy to make and last for a few months in the refrigerator. Making your own fresh pickles is a lovely way to eat more vegetables.

Different combinations of vinegars, vegetables and herbs may be used depending on preference and availability.

Beets with Thyme

4 medium beets, steamed until tender, peeled and thinly sliced into rounds

1 small yellow onion, trimmed and thinly sliced

1 large clove of garlic, smashed

1 long sprig of thyme

1 tsp whole peppercorns

1 ½ tbsp salt

1 tbsp sugar

1 c apple cider vinegar

1 c water

1 quart-liter size glass jar with lid

Cucumbers with Sage

1 large cucumber, thinly sliced into rounds

1 small yellow onion, trimmed and thinly sliced

1 large clove of garlic, smashed

1 long sprig of sage

1 tsp whole peppercorns

1 ½ tbsp salt

1 tbsp sugar

1 c rice wine vinegar

1 c water

1 quart-liter size glass jar with lid

Carrots with Rosemary

4 medium carrots, peeled, cut into rounds and steamed until tender

1 small yellow onion, trimmed and thinly sliced

1 large clove of garlic, smashed

1 long sprig of rosemary

1 tsp whole peppercorns

1 ½ tbsp salt

1 tbsp sugar

1 c apple cider vinegar

1 c water

1 quart-liter size glass jar with lid

1. Combine vinegar, water, sugar, salt, peppercorns, onions and garlic in a medium saucepan and heat over medium heat. Simmer until salt and sugar is dissolved and onions are tender, about 4-5 minutes, and then remove from heat.

2. Meanwhile, place herb sprig in jar. Next, layer the prepared vegetables with the cooked garlic and onions. Finally, pour the heated liquid over the ingredients in the jar, cover with lid and place in the refrigerator.

3. Allow to pickle for about one day. Fresh pickles will keep in the refrigerator for about 3-4 months.

Makes 2-3 cups of pickles