Chef Monsta: I cook, therefore I blog

My friend Marisa recently went on a trip to Morocco to discover her family roots and brought me back some yummy souvenirs: spices! She brought me back my faves- cumin, spicy paprika, saffron and ras el hanout. The most exotic of these flavors is definitely ras el hanout/ raz al hanout, a blend of spices that is used across North Africa. Ras el hanout, meaning “top of the shop” can include any combination of the following spices; cardamom, clove, cinnamon, ground chili peppers, coriander, cumin, nutmeg, peppercorn, paprika, fennel seeds, anise seeds and turmeric. Since I often cook with most of these spices anyways, the blend kills many birds with one stone. Marisa asked me what sort of recipe I could come up with that features ras el hanout and here’s the dish: Ras El Hanout Chicken with couscous (obviously). Next time she goes to Morocco, she better bring me back this.

Ingredients
1 lb of chicken breasts (or chicken on the bone)
1 can of chickpeas, drained
1 whole onion, diced
1/2 cup of green olives
1/4 c olive oil
4 cloves of garlic, chopped
2 tbsp ras el hanout
the juice and peel of one lemon
12 oz of tomato sauce or crushed tomatoes
salt and pepper to taste

Sautee the onion and garlic in olive oil, adding a tbsp of ras el hanout for about 4 minutes until browned.

Peel the lemons, slice the peels into thin strips. Throw in pot with chickpeas, stir.

Add the tomato sauce and half a cup of green olives, sliced.

Let the chickpea stew cook on a low heat for about 20 minutes before adding the chicken breasts. Season the chicken breasts in 1 tbsp of ras el hanout, salt and pepper.

After about 30 more minutes on the stove (low heat), dinner is served!