Roasted Vegetable Tagine with Apricot Chutney and Chermoula

Roasted Vegetable Tagine with Apricot Chutney and Chermoula

Diet trends come and go, but having a diet rich in vegetables has always been recognized for its ability to promote health. Getting a variety of vegetables in your diet each day should be a priority for everyone.

While veggies are great boiled, steamed or raw, my favorite way to eat veggies is roasted. Roasting is a wonderful technique for bringing out vegetables’ natural sweetness and deep flavor.

This recipe involves two sauces that add dramatic flavor to the veggies. They are easy to make and definitely worth the time investment. Each recipe makes a large quantity that can be frozen in portions for future use to make quick gourmet quality dinners with minimal time and effort.

---

Roasted Vegetable Tagine with Apricot Chutney and Chermoula

A tagine is a North African stew that is named after the clay pot in which it is typically prepared. The chutney and chermoula in this tagine add dramatic sweet, tart and spicy flavor to the caramelized vegetables.

Author: Erica Leazenby, MD; Adapted from Late Harvest Kitchen
Serves: 6
Time: 45 minutes

 Ingredients:

• 6 cups prepared brown rice, quinoa or couscous

• 9-12 cups of assorted raw vegetables,* chopped in large bite size pieces

• Apricot Chutney 

• Chermoula

• Optional: Feta, Northern or garbanzo beans, chicken or lamb**

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

2. Toss each veggie with a small amount of olive oil and season generously with salt and pepper. Arrange the veggies in a single layer on one or two large sheet pans. Keep the veggies in individual groups rather than mixed. This will allow you to easily remove veggies that finish roasting before others. 

3. Roast the veggies for 25-40 minutes or until the veggies are fork tender and slightly charred. Flip veggies once while roasting. 

4. While the veggies are roasting make the chutney and chermoula.

5.  To serve, place the roasted veggies on a bed of rice. Drizzle with 1-2 tablespoons of chermoula and a spoonful of chutney. Enjoy. 

* Use your favorite veggies. Broccoli and cauliflower florets, broccolini, carrots, parsnips, pearl onions, green beans and button mushrooms all work well. Plan on 1.5-2 cups of raw veggies per person if serving the dish as a main course. 

** Adding Northern beans, garbanzo beans, lamb or chicken will make this a complete meal. 

Check out these addition tips for perfect roasted veggies.

---

Apricot Chutney

Author: Erica Leazenby, MD; Adapted from Late Harvest Kitchen
Makes 3 cups
Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

• 2 cups dried apricots (about 6 ounces)

• ½ red onion

• 2 medium garlic cloves

• 1 packed cup cilantro, leaves and tender stems (about ½ bunch)

• ½ cup coconut or brown sugar

• 1 ½ cup red wine vinegar

• ½ teaspoon salt

• Fresh ground pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Place the apricots in a food processor and pulse until the fruit is small pieces. 

2. Add the onion, garlic and cilantro to the processor with the dried fruit. Run the machine until all ingredients are finely chopped. 

3. Place the fruit and onion mixture in a sauce pan with the sugar and vinegar. Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook for about 10 minutes until the sugar is dissolved and the onions are soft. Season with salt and pepper.

Notes:

• This mixture keeps for months in the freezer. Portion the mixture in ½ cup servings for easy use in the future. Gently warm before serving.

• It your apricots are particularly tart add an additional tablespoon of sugar. 

---

Chermoula

Chermoula is a marinade or relish commonly served in North African cooking. It traditionally includes herbs and many spices to flavor fish, seafood, meats and veggies. 

Author: Erica Leazenby, MD; Adapted from Late Harvest Kitchen
Makes 2 cups
Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

• ½ teaspoon ginger powder

• ½ teaspoon chili powder

• ½ teaspoon cumin

• ½ teaspoon coriander

• ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

• ¼ teaspoon nutmeg

• 1 squirt sriracha

• 1-1¼ cup neutral olive oil

• 1 large shallot 

• 2 medium cloves garlic

• 2 packed cups parsley, leaves and tender stems (about 1 bunch)

• 1 packed cup cilantro, leaves and tender stems (about ½ bunch)

• 2 Tablespoon sugar or honey

• 1 teaspoon turmeric

• 1 teaspoon paprika

Directions:

1. Place all the ingredients in a food processor with the exception of the olive oil. Run the machine until the mixture is finely chopped. 

2. While the machine is running, slowly add the olive oil until the mixture is the consistency of a sauce that can be drizzled on the veggies. 

3. Adjust seasoning and spices to taste. 

Note:

•  This mixture keeps well in the freezer. Portion the mixture in ¼- ½ cup servings for easy use in the future. Bring to room temperature before serving. 

My House Sauce: Italian Salsa Verde

Italian Salsa Verde

What separates a great meal from a truly outstanding meal is an amazing sauce. It is often the finishing touch that adds balance and cohesiveness to the meal. As a chef, I want a sauce with every meal, but as a working mom sauces are rarely a weeknight reality. This sauce, however, has become my favorite go-to. It is incredibly versatile and easy enough to make on a busy night. It brings instant brightness and umami flavor to everything from roasted veggies and potatoes to chicken or beef. I’ve served this sauce at dinner parties and watched people go back for second and third helpings! This year, I served this sauce at Thanksgiving as an alternative to gravy.

From a health perspective this sauce is loaded with nutritional benefits. Parsley is rich in antioxidants and vitamin K. It’s benefits far exceed a garnish. The anchovies provide a hint of extra omega-3 fat while the olive oil gives us heart-healthy omega-9 fats.

Working mom, chef tip: This Italian Salsa Verde freezes beautifully. Make it in a large batch and freeze it in 1/4 cup increments so that you can enjoy it regularly. Simply allow the sauce to come to room temperature before using.

---

Italian Salsa Verde

Author: Erica Leazenby, MD
Makes: about 2 cups
Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 bunch of flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped (about 2 cups packed)

• 2/3-1 cup extra virgin olive oil

• 1/4 cup capers, drained 

• 1 tsp anchovy paste

• 1 Tbsp white wine vinegar plus more to taste

• 1 Tbsp lemon juice plus more to taste

• 2 cloves garlic, minced

• zest from 1 lemon

• Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Place the parsley, capers, anchovies, vinegar, lemon and garlic in a food processor. Pulse the ingredients until they are well chopped. Scrape the sides of the bowl down as needed.

2. While the blade is running, slowly add the olive oil until the desired sauce consistency is reached.

3. Taste the sauce and season as needed with salt, pepper and additional vinegar or lemon juice. Serve at room temperature. 

4. Store the sauce in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one week. Allow the sauce to come to room temperature before use.