Vegetable tagine with almond and chickpea couscous – an easy, healthy vegetarian/vegan meal with tonnes of flavour. Post sponsored by Appletiser.

Various types of vegetable soups and stews feature heavily in my kitchen during the winter. This tagine is one of my favourites as it feels more rich and special than a regular stew and has a really wonderful sweet/spicy flavour.

When Appletiser challenged me to come up with a recipe to fit the theme of ‘cosy midweek supper club’, I knew that this vegetable tagine would be perfect.

It is warming and hearty – just right for a chilly November, it’s very easy and economical to make so is not too much effort to cook after work, and when served alongside the almond and chickpea couscous it is a very impressive and satisfying meal that would be just as good to serve at a supper club as it would be for a regular weeknight dinner.

The slightly sweet, warmingly spiced flavour pairs perfectly with Appletiser; the tagine contains cinnamon and apricots – both flavours that work perfectly with apple, and because this is a midweek supper club, Appletiser is the perfect choice to serve instead of wine!

Now I can’t claim that this is an authentic tagine recipe, in particular because it isn’t actually cooked in a tagine (because who has room in their kitchen for a tagine pot?!); but it does taste fantastic.

The crunch of the toasted almonds in the couscous provides a lovely textural contrast against the soft vegetables, and the dried apricots and dash of honey/agave perfectly balance out the spices.

The only real work that is required is chopping the vegetables, so this is a pretty low-effort meal, and the leftovers keep really well for a a few days.

You can also vary the vegetables that you use to suit; just make sure that you keep the pieces fairly chunky when you chop them up so that they don’t lose their shape and fall apart when cooked.

More Hearty Vegetable Recipes:

Vegetable Tagine With Almond and Chickpea Couscous Recipe:

Name: Vegetable Tagine With Almond And Chickpea Couscous.
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 60 min
Total time: 75 min
Yield: 6 people
Ingredients: 2 Tbsp olive oil; 1 red onion (peeled and sliced); 1 medium aubergine (eggplant) (diced); 2 large carrots (sliced into rounds); 1 red bell pepper (cut into large dice); 1 yellow bell pepper (cut into large dice); 1 small butternut squash (peeled, de-seeded and cut into large dice); 1 courgette (zucchini) (sliced into rounds); 5 cloves garlic (crushed); 2 Tbsp tomato purée; 2 tsp ground coriander; 2 tsp ground cumin; 1 tsp ground cinnamon; ½ tsp turmeric; 2 Tbsp harissa paste; 1 Tbsp honey/agave nectar; 1 400 g (14oz) tin chopped tomatoes; 400 ml (1 + 2/3 cup) vegetable stock; 10 dried apricots (halved); small handful fresh mint (finely chopped); salt and pepper; 300 g (10.5 oz) dried couscous; 480 ml (2 cups) hot vegetable stock; 1 400 g (14 oz) tin chickpeas (rinsed and drained); 2 Tbsp harissa paste; juice of 1 lemon; large handful toasted flaked almonds; salt and pepper

5 from 9 votes