Yield: 2 Servings

This recipe begins as a vegan dish but can be easily modified to become chicken, lamb or seafood tajine. Tajine is actually a method of cooking used in Morocco and it is also the name of the cooking vessel used to cook the dish. At the Abbey Dining room, tajine is prepared in a regular pot then served in a tajine. If you don’t have a tajine to serve in, a large serving bowl or soup terrine will be a fine substitute.

Ingredients:

Butternut squash tajine:
• 1 small butternut squash
• 2 carrots, medium diced
• 1 onion, medium diced
• 1 “finger” of fresh ginger, thinly sliced or minced
• 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced or minced
• 1 can cooked garbanzo beans (optional)
• 2 medium size potatoes (any variety), medium diced
• 1 Tablespoon whole fennel seeds
• 2 Tablespoons ground cumin
• 2 Tablespoons curry powder
• 1 pinch saffron
• 3 bay leaves
• 2 whole cinnamon sticks
• ½ cup white wine
• ¼ cup dried apricots
• ¼ cup dried yellow raisins
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 1 red bell pepper, medium diced

Cous cous:
• 1 cup cous cous
• ½ onion, chopped
• 1 cup water
• Salt and pepper
• 1 pinch saffron
• Fresh mint or cilantro, chopped for garnish

Method:
For tajine:
Peel and seed the butternut squash. Roughly chop half of the squash and dice remaining half to be sautéed with other vegetables. Peel and chop 1 carrot and place in a medium saucepan with the roughly chopped squash. Add 2 quarts of water and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer carrots and squash until soft. Set aside to cool.

Chop all remaining vegetables but keep separated. In large saucepot or soup pot, sauté onion until translucent. Add remaining carrot, ginger and garlic and cook until garlic begins to brown. Add garbanzo beans (if desired), potatoes and the remaining squash. Add fennel seeds, ground cumin, curry powder, saffron, bay leaves and cinnamon sticks. Deglaze with wine. Add 2 quarts of water, dried fruit, and salt and pepper. Simmer uncovered until potatoes and squash are cooked through.

Meanwhile, puree squash and carrot with cooking liquid and add to tajine. Quickly sauté the red bell peppers in hot pan and add to tajine.
Check seasoning and add salt and pepper to taste.

For cous cous:
Place 1 cup of cous cous in large bowl. Sauté onion until translucent.
Add 1 cup water, salt and pepper and a pinch of saffron and bring to a boil. Stir liquid into cous cous, cover, and let stand for 10 minutes.
Uncover, fluff with fork and serve immediately as an accompaniment to tajine. Garnish with chopped fresh mint and/or cilantro.

Wine pairing:
A lighter Tempranillo such as the Bodegas Sierra Cantabria Rioja Tinto 2002