Morocco
Jeweled Butternut & Date Couscous
Moroccan markets are called souks, and they have whole streets of nothing but spices — cones of red, yellow and brown piled higher than your head. Our couscous sparkles like a market stall.
What your child practised
- Dicing butternut squash with a knife
- Chopping dates
- Sautéing and spicing on the burner
- Fluffing couscous with forks
- Juicing lemons
Ingredients makes 8–14 portions
- 1 1/2–2 cups couscous
- 2–2 1/2 cups vegetable broth
- 1 butternut squash
- 8–12 Medjool dates
- 1–1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1–1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1/4–1/2 tsp ground turmeric
- 3–4 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 bunch fresh mint or parsley
- 1–2 lemons
- 1–1 1/2 tsp salt
How it is made
- An adult brings the broth to a boil, pours it over the couscous in a large bowl, and covers it. It steeps quietly — no peeking, no stirring.
- Sauté the diced squash with the cinnamon, cumin, turmeric and salt for 8–10 minutes until tender and golden. Watch how the turmeric turns everything gold the moment it hits the oil.
- Chop the pitted dates — sticky and fun.
- Uncover the couscous and fluff it with two forks. Look how much bigger the grains are than when they went in.
- Fold in the squash, dates, herbs and a squeeze of lemon. Taste and adjust like a true chef.