(Vegan, Gluten-Free) This super simple deconstructed veggie tagine will have your tastebuds tantalising over the sweet and savoury combo with a little spice! I made the sauce, roasted the chickpea/squash combo and stored them separately so that I could heat together to eat throughout the week -without getting too mushy.Also, it meant I could roast a whole squash from my Kent Veg Box and mix with two cans of chickpeas to have enough of this roasted combo leftover to throw into salads for lunches! I love when a meal prep day comes together…

Ingredients

Squash/Chickpea Combo

• 1 kg squash, such as a medium butternut or 1/2 Crown Prince (I used a whole Crown Prince)
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 can chickpeas (since I used a whole Crown Prince, I used 2 cans of chickpeas so that I could use leftover chickpea/squash combo for lunch salads after spicy apricot sauce was gone)
• Sea salt and black pepper to taste

Spicy Apricot Sauce

• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 small onions or shallots, sliced
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup (100g) dried apricots, chopped
• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
• 2 tsp ginger (fresh is best, I used dried)
• 2 garlic cloves, crush and chopped
• 1/2 tsp dried chilli flakes (if spicy isn’t your thing, skip this)
• 1 can of chopped tomatoes
• 1 tsp sugar (or maple syrup)
• 1/2 of one lemon, juice squeezed
• 4 Tbsp chopped coriander (cilantro)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 200C/400F.
2. Chop squash into wedges or cubes. Throw into roasting dish and toss with olive, salt and pepper. Roast for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Add chickpeas and mix into squash so that chickpeas are also seasoned with olive oil, salt and pepper (add more if needed). Bake for another 10 minutes until squash is brown and tender whilst chickpeas are hot and crunchy.
3. Whilst squash is roasting, heat olive oil and onions in frying pan over medium heat for about 8 minutes until softened, stirring a few times. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
4. Add the chopped apricots and cumin. Stir over heat for a few minutes. Add ginger, garlic and chili flakes. Cook for another few minutes. Add the can of tomatoes and sugar/maple syrup.
5. Bring to simmer and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally until the sauce is thick. Turn off the heat; add coriander/cilantro and lemon juice. Taste and season with more salt and pepper if needed.
6. Once squash/chickpea combo is done roasting, plate how much squash/chickpea combo you want and top with warm sauce garnished with fresh coriander/cilantro and a little squeeze of lemon.

Source: River Cottage Much More Veg Cookbook