Moroccan Chicken

Picture courtesy of MyRecipes.com

I made this easy crock-pot dish yesterday, and it was fun to try a new combination of spices together, plus it's really healthy for you and packed with vegetables. My boys ate it right up!

Moroccan Chicken with Couscous

1 (12 oz) bag frozen butternut squash cubes (I peeled and chopped ~4 sweet potatoes instead)
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 tsp minced garlic
1 (15 oz) can chickpeas, drained & rinsed
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup raisins
2 tsp coriander
1 tsp cinnamon
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cayenne
3 lb bone-in, skinless chicken thighs
1 (10-oz) box couscous
1/2 cup pitted black olives, halved

1. In a large slow cooker, combine squash (or sweet potatoes), tomatoes, onions, garlic, chickpeas, broth, and raisins. In a small bowl, stir together coriander, cumin, cinnamon, salt, and cayenne. Rub mixture into chicken. (Note, my chicken was not skinless, and I was in a rush to get it all in the crock pot before Jackson got up, so I just rubbed these spices under the skin, directly on top of the raw chicken meat...never thought I'd do that before...kinda gross.)

2. Arrange chicken in a single layer atop vegetables in slow cooker. Cover and cook for 4 hours on HIGH or 8 hours on LOW.

3. Prepare couscous according to package directions. Fluff with a fork. Stir olives into slow cooker. Serve chicken and vegetables with couscous.

(Another note, be careful when pulling your chicken out of the crock pot. Because it's so tender and literally falling off the bone, you have to sort of dig through the crock pot to make sure you're not missing any bones, chicken grub, etc. I gave Andy fair warning before he started eating, to examine his food before putting it into his mouth. :) I do have to say, I don't cook with bone-in chicken all that often, but it really makes a difference in taste! This really is a great dish.)