​Slow Cooker Moroccan Chicken with Chopped Almonds, Apricots and Cauliflower “Couscous”

Oh my gosh!!! This was the BOMB. So much flavor, so many fun and tasty ingredients, and so not that hard to make! To make prep a little easier I bought matchstick carrots and frozen plain riced cauliflower. I also used dried unsweetened cranberries instead of cherries because I could not find dried cherries anywhere (well at least ones without sugar added). My recommendation is to go out and get your grocery shopping done the day or night before, prep this recipe first thing the next morning, and throw it in the slow cooker for the rest of the day to cook. My favorite meal prep days are the ones where I get something knocked out right away instead of waiting all day to get started on everything. Always a good move to find a way to break the cooking up instead of slaying it in the kitchen for 3 hours. Anyways though, this meal was seriously amazing. Don't be intimidated by all the ingredients and give it a try! I promise you will be  extremely pleased to eat this for lunch all week long!

Slow Cooker Moroccan Chicken with Chopped Almonds, Apricots and Cauliflower “Couscous”
Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 pounds bone-in chicken thighs, skins removed (I used boneless)
• Salt and pepper (to initially season the chicken)
• 1 medium yellow onion, peeled and sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon cracked pepper
• 1/2 cup unsalted chicken stock
• 1/4 cup unsalted natural almond butter
• 6 ounces unsweetened dried apricots
• 1 pound baby carrots

For the Cauliflower Couscous

• 1 large head cauliflower, cut into florets
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 3/4 cup yellow onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/4 teaspoon cracked pepper
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened dried cherries (I used dried unsweetened cranberries)
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• Zest of one lemon

For the Garnish

• 1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted (I omitted these)
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro

Directions:

1. Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Season the chicken generously with salt and pepper then add half of the chicken to the pot. Cook for 5 minutes, browning on all sides. Transfer the chicken to a slow cooker and repeat with remaining chicken.
2. Return the pot to the stove and add onion and garlic and sauté for three minutes or until tender. Add the ginger, cumin, coriander, cinnamon, cayenne, salt and pepper and sauté for 30 seconds or until fragrant.
3. Stir in chicken stock and almond butter, scraping pot to loosen any browned bits. Pour contents of pot over chicken into the slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for five hours.
4. Add the apricots and baby carrots to the slow cooker, cover and cook an additional hour.
5. Meanwhile, prepare the cauliflower “couscous.” Grate cauliflower by running the florets through a food processor with a grating attachment or use a box grater to create rice-like pieces. Pick out any large fragments that didn’t get shredded and save for another use. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Sauté the onions and garlic for 2 minutes, then add the cauliflower, salt and pepper. Sauté for 8 to 10 minutes, until the cauliflower is tender. Stir in the cherries, basil, cilantro and lemon zest.
6. Garnish the chicken with toasted, sliced almonds and fresh cilantro. Serve over cauliflower couscous.

Note: To toast almonds, spread them in an even layer on a baking sheet. Bake at 350°F for 5 minutes.

Original recipe found here