Couscous with spicy vegetables

I almost never eat zucchini, because it is quite hard to find some nice tasting ones in the local super market. Most of the time they taste like nothing at all or, in the worst case, their flavour is best described as that of dirty water. In the summer of 2017, which was the first time I ever had my own vegetable garden, I grew my own zucchini plants and they carried a lot of beautiful courgettes. Unfortunately, this year both of my new plants died and I was forced to buy courgettes, instead of picking them from my own garden. What a disappointment! Though the dark green ones rarely have a good taste, I find that the light green Turkish zucchini are very nice and sometimes I can find them in the International super market in the city. So I did the day before yesterday and I used them in this spicy dish which my mother used to make when I was little. Ingredients, serves 2-3 - 250g couscous, medium grain - 500mL water - 1 big shiny eggplant, cut in 2cm pieces - 3 Turkish zucchini, cut somewhat bigger than the eggplant, because they cook faster - 3 long red sweet peppers, seeds removed, cut in 3cm pieces - 1 big onion, sliced - 1 cinnamon stick - 2 cloves - a handful of raisins - a big tablespoon of pine nuts - chilli pepper to taste - 1 can of tomato pulp - extra vergine olive oil - salt and black pepper In a big sauté pan or a tagine, heat a couple of tablespoons of olive oil and fry the onions for a minute or two. Add all the vegetables, raisins, pine nuts and spices and sauté shortly. Stir in the tomato pulp and a glass of water and season with salt and black pepper. Cover and let simmer for some 20-25 minutes until all the vegetables are tender. Meanwhile bring 500mL of water to a boil in a skillet. Add a bit of salt and a tablespoon of olive oil. Add the couscous and give the pan a gentle shake in order to make sure the couscous is evenly spread on the bottom of the pan. Turn off the heat, cover and let steam for approximately 10 minutes. Gently fluff the couscous with a fork. Serve the couscous and the sauce hot, with a fresh salad. Enjoy!