Butternut Squash Couscous

This is such an easy fall recipe. Couscous is one of the easiest, most versatile side dishes, especially when you're tired of pasta. And I only recently discovered butternut squash this past fall. It's quite an ordeal to peel and slice it, but it's quite tasty! Save the seeds and toast them, too. Recipe from RealSimple.com.

Ingredients:

• 1 butternut squash (2 pounds)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 cup canned diced tomatoes
• 1/3 cup dark or golden raisins
• 1 32-ounce container vegetable broth
• 1 15.5-ounce can chickpeas, drained
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 1/2 cups couscous
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves

Halve and peel the squash. Remove the seeds and cut the squash into 1-inch chunks. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes. Add the garlic, cayenne, cinnamon, nutmeg, and 1/2 teaspoon of the cumin and cook for 1 minute. Stir in the squash, tomatoes, raisins, broth, chickpeas, and 1 1/2 teaspoons of the salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes. Uncover and cook until the squash is tender, 15 to 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, bring 1 1/2 cups water and the remaining cumin and salt to a boil. Stir in the couscous. Cover, remove from heat, and let stand for 5 to 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork.

Divide the couscous among individual bowls and ladle the squash over the top. Sprinkle with the parsley and almonds.