I sort of jumped the gun and went apple picking this past weekend. It’s a bit early in the season, so where I usually come back with several different varieties I ended up with who-knows-how-many pounds of Honeycrisps. They are literally overflowing in my kitchen, so I’m pressed to find ways to use them up…Luckily, they are delicious, balanced in flavor between sweet and tart, and hold up well to cooking. <br /> <br />Couscous, while a North African staple, has truly become popularized and is found throughout parts of France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Eastern Europe, and across the Middle East. Here, in the States, I’ve seen it creep onto dinner tables because of its incredible versatility and high nutritional content compared to rice and pasta. North African cooking, particularly Moroccan, is full of sweet and savoury dishes – with spices like cardamom or cinnamon bridging the gap. So couscous as a sweet side dish or a dessert does exist, though I surely haven’t seen any Berber recipes with apples… <br /> <br />For this dish, I was inspired by (obviously) the mass of apples in my kitchen, the sweet couscous recipes of North Africa involving dried fruits and nuts, and even the rice puddings of American and South Asian cultures (though this has no cream or milk). This dish is extraordinarily simple, healthy and delicious. It’s basically cooking a warm, buttery apple pie filling, folding it in to light, fluffy, sweetened couscous, and topping it with nutty, crunchy thin almond slices. The textures are beautiful and who can resist the combination of apples and cinnamon. A great fall dish… enjoy! <br />

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