The aromatic and subtle flavours of cooking from Morocco...

Inspired by the romantic Moroccan cities of Marrakech and Casablanca, this Valentine’s meal takes your taste buds on a tour of the colourful cuisine of Morocco. The flavours there are a fine balance of sweetness and fragrant spices - including allspice, cassia and cardamon - which produces a refined cuisine that’s famous the world over. To begin we’ve got vegetable pastries known as briouats served with a spicy rose petal harissa.

Next chermoula grilled lamb chops with saffron couscous and a spring vegetable tagine. Finally, to refresh the palate an orange salad topped with rose petals and some filo and almond biscuits on the side.

BRIOUAT SPICES: cinnamon, coriander, cumin, paprika, allspice, green cardamon, cassia, bay, fennel, caraway, long pepper, cubeb pepper, rose, lavender, black pepper, mace, black cardamon, cayenne chilli, turmeric, galangal, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, saffron
HARISSA SPICES: paprika, chilli, caraway, coriander, cumin, garlic, mint, rose, salt
LAMB SPICES: cumin, coriander, parsley, mint, black pepper, paprika
TAGINE SPICES: allspice, coriander, green cardamon, chilli, cassia, bay, fennel, caraway, long pepper, cubeb pepper, rose, lavender, black pepper, cumin, mace, black cardamon, cayenne chilli, paprika, turmeric, galangal, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, saffron
COUSCOUS BLEND: mint, parsley, garlic, turmeric, saffron
SYRUP WHOLE SPICES: green cardamon, orange flowers, allspice, cloves, cassia
ROSE PETALS.

• 4 lamb chops or 2 chicken breasts 
• 200g mixture of spring veg (eg asparagus, purple sprouting broccoli, spring onions etc) 
• 1 medium onion
• 2 medium carrots
• 75g spinach (fresh or frozen)
• 2 oranges (1 regular and 1 blood orange or grapefruit is best) 
• 1 lemon
• 55g butter 
• 5 sheets of filo pastry
• 125g couscous
• 1 tbsp tomato puree
• 65g honey
• 50g dates, prunes or dried apricots - pitted and thinly sliced
• 50g flaked almonds