Vegetable Tagine

Caught Jan's cold, so haven't been cooking much recently! But feeling better over the last couple of days, and managed to rustle up a few yummy things, including this old favourite...

Vegetable Tagine
(recipe from 'Moorish', by the wonderful Greg & Lucy Malouf. Highly recommend their books - the photos and recipes in 'Turquoise' were so beautiful they convinced us to go to Turkey for a holiday!).

This recipe has a lot of steps, but it is the different preparation of each vegetable that makes it so delicious. Worth making a large amount, as the flavour improves over a couple of days. This recipe makes enough for 6 serves.
You will need:

• 1 large onion
• 3 cloves garlic
• 3 green chilies
• 1 tablespoon each caraway seeds, ground cumin and ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon each ground ginger and allspice
• 2 teaspoons sweet paprika
• Generous tablespoon of honey
• 2 x tins crushed tomatoes
• 800 ml water
• Small butternut squash/pumpkin 
• 2 small eggplants*
• 2 small zucchinis*
• 1 tin cooked chickpeas, drained
• Olive oil
• Salt & pepper to season
• Couscous, green olives, pinenuts, parsley, coriander and lemon wedges to serve

* aka aubergines and courgettes, for the non-Australians :)

Finely chop the onion. Saute over medium heat with 2 tablespoons of olive oil until soft and translucent.

Crush the garlic cloves with 1 teaspoon of salt. Stir the garlic paste through the softened onions and saute for a further minute.

Slice the chilies in half length-ways and remove seeds.

Add the spices to the pan and saute for a couple of minutes until fragrant.

Throw in the chilies...

...followed by the crushed tomatoes, honey and water. Simmer gently for ~30 minutes until rich and saucy.

Meanwhile, cut the squash into 2-3cm chunks. Drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and pepper and roast until tender.

Slice the eggplant and zucchini into fingers, 1-2cm thick. Toss with olive oil, salt and pepper.

Grill or fry until golden and squidgy.

When the sauce has thickened, stir in the chickpeas...

... followed by the prepared vegetables. Simmer gently for a few minutes to allow the flavours to combine.

In the meantime, prepare some coucous to accompany the tagine. We like to spice the couscous with bayleaves, paprika, cumin and a touch of cinnamon.

Serve with olives, toasted pinenuts, lemon, parsley and coriander.