This week’s winter wallop, with its thick blanket of snow and subzero temperatures, brought serious cravings for a body-and-soul warming dish. Tagines are deeply spiced North African stews, traditionally slow-cooked in a clay vessel also called a tagine (the stew is named for the vessel in which it is cooked, but a Dutch oven works well as a replacement). Lamb, fish, chicken, and beef often take center stage in tagines, but the dish is endlessly adaptable. My nourishing vegetarian version is anchored by hearty chickpeas and butternut squash, and layered with warming ginger, earthy-sweet saffron, and the Moroccan spice blend ras el hanout.
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There was almost no greater treat when I was a kid than spending the night at my grandparents’ house. I lived for digging in their massive organic garden, listening to Danny Kaye’s magical Hans Christian Anderson recordings, and the creamy, homemade honey ice cream they churned! When breakfast time rolled around, I’d slide into the big booth in their kitchen while my “health food”- (as it was dubbed in the 70’s) loving grandmother made soft-boiled eggs seasoned with savory, 
