My daughter Sarah is my toughest cooking critic, and she was a little skeptical when she walked in and caught the scent of this Moroccan-inspired dish. Watching her fall in love with it at the table made me proud; a teenager voluntarily eating her vegetables? There’s a first time for everything. Tagines are usually made with some sort of animal protein, but we’ve kept this one strictly veggie, focusing on the dish’s warm spices and rib-sticking squash and chickpeas. Legumes are usually a no-no for me, so I eat around the chickpeas. You could also omit them and up the squash by half a pound. Serve this tagine with Raw Cauliflower and Hemp “Couscous”.
Serves 4 to 6
In a medium bowl, toss the squash cubes with ¼ teaspoon each salt and pepper. In a large skillet with a lid, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil over medium-high heat. Add the squash and cook until browned on all sides, avoiding moving the pieces around except to flip, 4 to 5 minutes total. Transfer the squash to a bowl and reserve.
Add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil to the skillet, then add the onion and cook, stirring, until softened and translucent, 6 to 7 minutes. Add the ginger, turmeric, garlic, cumin, cinnamon, coriander, red pepper flakes, the remaining ¼ teaspoon salt, and the remaining ¼ teaspoon pepper and cook, stirring, until the spices are fragrant, about 2 minutes.
Return the squash to the pan and add the chickpeas, zucchini, apricots, and broth. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, cover, and simmer until the liquid thickens and the squash can be easily pierced with a fork but is not mushy, 12 to 15 minutes. Stir in the parsley and cilantro and serve.