Nummy Moroccan Stew

Today was definitely a comfort food day for us. Andrew was coming over to stay the night after pulling a nasty 3-12 shift at Tim Hortons, and I know how he loves a good stew (or chili) to warm up his belly! He's trying to eat a better, more balanced diet still (as is his father) even though he gave up his quest to be a vegetarian after Christmas. Even though he's given up the lifestyle I'm more or less forced to live, he doesn't mind eating my veggie cuisine. In fact, more often than not he still eats meatless meals when he's cooking for himself!

Andrew was a great help to me today (though he was falling asleep at the chopping board!) while we were preparing the squash and onions for this Moroccan-esque meal, so he's sleeping it off now so that he's all prepared for a few rounds of bowling tomorrow! It is definitely a little labour intensive but the heartiness and flavour of the chickpeas, butternut chunks and spices is worth it, trust me! Full of vitamins and protein too, this is definitely going to be a keeper in my book. Good thing it gets better as it keeps, because it makes a bunch and that way Andrew will have some work meals for the coming week! Save yourself the hassle of cooking chickpeas fresh, since the canned is perfectly fine, and definitely add the cumin to the couscous water for some extra smokiness. Whole wheat couscous is also highly reccomended (both for nutrition and flavour) as a bed for this meal.

Given that couscous is, in fact, a type of pasta, I'm selecting this stupendously yummy recipe to send in to Ruth's Presto Pasta Nights (which gets rounded up this Friday!!). There's also a decadently put-together Facebook group for it, so check that out for past editions!

Tomato Butternut Stew With Couscous
Makes 7 servings, 1 1/4 cups stew over 1/2 cup couscous each
2 lb whole butternut squash
1 cup chopped sweet onion
3 cloves garlic, minced
½ teaspoon paprika
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground cumin, divided
1 ¾ cup vegetable stock
2 cups cooked chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 19 oz can diced tomatoes, drained
1 ½ cups water
½ teaspoon kosher salt
1 ½ cups whole wheat couscous, uncooked

1. Peel and remove seeds from squash. Cut into 1-inch pieces; set aside.
2. Heat ¼ cup of water in a 6-quart saucepan over medium heat.
3. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 5 minutes.
4. Stir in garlic, paprika, cinnamon, nutmeg and ½ teaspoon cumin. Cook 1 minute more.
5. Add broth, squash, chickpeas, and tomatoes.
6. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
7. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer 25 minutes or until squash is tender.
8. Heat water to boiling in medium saucepan.
9. Stir in remaining cumin and salt; then stir in couscous.
10. Cover, remove from heat and let stand 5 minutes. Fluff with fork.
11. Serve stew over couscous in large shallow serving bowl.

Amount Per Serving
Calories: 296.4
Total Fat: 2.0 g
Cholesterol: 0.0 mg
Sodium: 816.1 mg
Total Carbs: 62.4 g
Dietary Fiber: 9.3 g
Protein: 10.6 g