Last winter when we created a kid-friendly chicken tagine in class, a few of the vegetarian parents asked how they could make the dish without the addition of meat.  While vegetarian cooking does take more thought for flavor development and, at times, more creativity to bring up the protein level to make it healthful for children, this tagine was very easy to adapt.

The mini-chefs dove into the task of making the spice broth and adding in the vegetables, and besides the preparation it took to get everything ready for them to create the dish, they did all of the assembly themselves.  What a fun and hearty dish.  We prepared cous-cous to go underneath our tagine and soak up some of its flavors.  It was a hit with the kids, even the pickier eaters who would not try certain parts of the tagine.

One ingredient that we left out for class but which would definitely add more earthiness and flavor is eggplant.  Japanese eggplants, if you can find them at your greenmarket, would be a tasty and easy choice.  Eggplant has been added to the ingredient list below as optional.  If you do choose to use it, simply put in a bit less squash and sweet potato or use a bigger pot to cook in.

This would make the perfect Thanksgiving main course for a vegetarian family or vegetarian guests.  It feels incredibly lavish and hearty while not being at all difficult to make.  If you do not have a clay baker, which are pretty inexpensive if you can find them locally, then make the dish in a large dutch oven, placed in a preheated 375 degree oven.  Cook till the vegetables are tender, about 1 1/2- 2 hours.

Fall/Winter Vegetable Tagine with Cous-Cous

• 3 cups vegetable stock
• 1 T. tomato paste
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 1/2 T. cumin
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 1 T. fresh ginger, minced (or 2 t. ground ginger)
• 1 t. coriander
• 1 t. paprika
• 2 medium onions, chopped
• 5 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
• 2 mini-chef handfuls of raisins (golden, regular, or a mixture)
• 2 mini-chef handfuls of dried cranberries
• 2 mini-chef handfuls of  dried un-sulphured apricots
• 2 mini-chef handfuls of pitted prunes
• 3 cups cooked chickpeas
• 3 medium carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
• 1 1/2 medium yams or sweet potatoes, skin scrubbed well and cut into large chunks ( 1-inch to 1 1/2-inch chunks)
• 2 lbs butternut squash, peeled, seeds scooped out with a spoon, and cut into 1-inch chunks
• 1-2 japanese eggplants or 1 small eggplant, scrubbed, top cut off and cut as above with the sweet potato
• black pepper, to taste

1. Soak your clay baker in cold, clean water for at least 15 minutes.
2. With your mini-chef, place the stock, tomato paste, bay leaves, spices, salt, onions, and garlic into the base of the baker and stir the liquid a bit.
3. Gently add the rest of the vegetables and the chickpeas, tossing very gently with your hands or a big spoon to mix.
4. Place the top on the clay baker and place in a COLD oven.
5. Turn the oven on now at 480 degrees and cook your tagine for about 60-75 minutes.  The vegetables should hold together well still but be tender all the way through.
6. Be careful when you pull the baker out of the oven and the top off of it.  Lots of very hot steam will escape!

For the Cous-Cous:

• 4 c. cous-cous
• 4 c. vegetable stock
• 2 c. water
• salt and pepper, to taste

1. Bring the stock and the water to a boil over high heat.
2. Add the cous-cous and stir for a few seconds.
3. Turn off the heat, cover with a tight-fitting lid, and let steam for 5 minutes
4. Uncover and season, to taste.
5. Serve a big scoop of cous-cous topped with a big scoop of tagine on top.  Enjoy!