Guest coming tomorrow.... Something to go with a lamb tagine.....

[Portofino]

that I can knock up tonight with cupboard ingredients or easily tomorrow after a quick trip to the shops...

DH tells me today that a colleague of his is over from the US. This guy is a very old friend of ours - in fact I snogged knew him first, so I suggested inviting him for dinner after all their meetings.

I've spent my food budget for the week, so after searching cupboard/freezer I am tonight making moroccan lamb, so it can "flobulate" overnight. I have couscous to go with it, but despite bulking it out a bit with carrots, it doesn't really look like enough for 3, and it is yet to cook for long.

I'm happy to pop to shop after work and buy a pudding/a few top up ingredients etc but I have found a tin of chick peans/chillis/tomatoes in the cupboard. I don't have a lot of time tomorrow night and don't want to spend a lot of money either.

Any suggestions?

Roast some courgettes (and an aubergine/red pepper?) tom eve so they are soft then add them to the tagine before you warm it up. They'll absorb the flavour and bulk it out. And some dried apricots and almonds add flavour/richness and make it more filling, also to be added tomorrow.

add tin to tagine now this minute

You can add the chickpeas to the cous cous, or stir them into the tagine and heat through just before serving. A Morroccan-style salad would be nice too, with lemon juice.

Thanks! But unfortunately aubergine and courgettes are considered the devil's work in this house! I love them but they "disagree" with dh....Dried apricots /almonds would def add something. Though there is some fruit in the jar of sauce loving preprared recipe.....

Bit worried chick peas will soak up all the sauce. There isn't a lot, and i don't think I have the right spices to jazz it up. Garlic, cinnamon, coriander??? I'm think cumin, and i have none. Janeite, what would you put in a moroccan salad?

DH would starve in this house if courgettes disagreed with him, they are my staple for adding bulk!

You could always just steam some veg to go on the side - something like broccoli fills the plate up.

Or you could buy a lump of hard sheep's cheese and some dried figs for afterwards, which wouldn't clash too much with a tagine main course.

wondering . My typing isn't up to much tonight - keep leaving the end off words...

Any use? Haven't made it myself but did a Madhur Jafery one once which was similar and v nice.

This one is more similar to the one I did

A tomato one