cous cous with eggplant-squash tagine

Cous Cous accompanied by some spicy tagine (vegetable stew, no meat here) is a favorite meal at home. My wee one seems to like cous cous a lot, except she likes to call it cous cous rice, as rice happens to one of her favorites.

If handy, I sometimes add wheat-meat cut up into bite-sized chunks to the tagine.

To add to the series on Various Ways To Use Up Squash From Last Year, this tagine recipe uses eggplant, squash and tomatoes as the main vegetables. But, any other favorite vegetable combination can be used for the tagine/stew.

Ingredients

flavoring spices:
1 Tbsp cumin powder
2 Tbsp coriander powder
2 Tbsp chili powder
1 Tbsp paprika
1 tsp all-spice powder
1-2 Tbsp olive oil
salt to taste

for the tagine:
4-6 cups veggies:
eggplant, squash, tomatoes, diced
4-6 garlic cloves minced
2 Tbsp grated ginger
4 Tbsp tomato paste
cilantro for garnish


1 cup whole wheat cous cous, cooked and fluffed

Preparation

heat oil in a pan, add the onions, ginger, garlic, tomato paste and a pinch of salt, and sauté a bit; then add the spice powders and allow them to bloom

add the diced squash, eggplant, and tomatoes, cover and let it cook, adding a little water if needed; let it simmer till veggies are cooked through but not mushy; taste and adjust spices if needed

off heat, garnish with cilantro and serve warm with cous cous.