Fragrant Moroccan Beef with Dates and Prune

3lbs organic beef, trimmed of fat & cubed
1tablespoon olive oil
1lb onion, peeled & quartered
4 -6garlic cloves, peeled & chopped finely
1lb carrot, peeled & cut into chunks
9ounces canned tomatoes
4ounces dates, pitted but kept whole
6ounces prunes, pitted but kept whole
2tablespoons honey
¹⁄₂pint beef stock
1cinnamon stick
6teaspoons ras el hanout spice mix (or 2 teaspoons cumin powder, 2 teaspoons coriander powder, 1 teaspoon ginger and 1 teaspoon turmeric)
salt & pepper
2ounces toasted sliced almonds
2tablespoons fresh coriander, chopped

Par-boil the carrots in boiling water for about 3 -5 minutes.
Preheat the electric Tagine or crock pot to High.
Heat up half of the olive oil in a large frying pan and quickly brown the onion quarters over a fairly high heat until charred & coloured well. Tip them into the crock pot.
Add the chopped garlic & par-boiled carrots to the onions in the crock pot.
Make up 1/2 pint of stock with a beef stock cube. Add the honey to the the stock & ALL the dried spices. Tip the honey & spiced stock into the crock pot & mix well. Add the cinnamon stick.
Add the tinned tomatoes, dates & prunes to the crock pot – mix well.
Heat up the remaining olive oil and brown the beef cubes in small batches to sear & seal them. As you finish browning them, add the beef to the crock pot.
When you have finished browning all the beef, give the whole mixture a good stir & season with salt & pepper.
Cook on high for between 6 & 10 hours depending on your crock pot’s wattage & settings.
Serve the beef tagine with fluffy couscous and garnish with the chopped fresh coriander & toasted flaked almonds. It also works well with rice too.
P.S. Watch out for the cinnamon stick! We sometimes award the lucky winner of the cinnamon stick with an extra glass of wine!
P.P.S. You can use dates & prunes which have not been pitted, they do tend to hold their shape better too, just warn your guests that they must look out for the stones!

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