White Bean Tagine - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 teaspoon sesame seeds
1 large onion, chopped
1 1/2 cups 2% low-fat milk
1 (10 ounce) package couscous
2 (15 ounce) cans cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup vegetable broth
3 tablespoons honey
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon powdered saffron (can use tumeric for color if you can't find saffron)
1/8 teaspoon white pepper
6 apricots, pitted and quartered
1/3 cup cilantro leaf
salt

Preparation

Toast sesame seeds in a wide nonstick frying pan over medium heat, stirring often, until golden (about 3 minutes). Remove from pan; set aside.
In same pan, combine onion and 1/4 cup water. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring often, until onion is soft (about 5 minutes); add water, 1 tablespoon at a time if pan appears dry. Remove from heat.
In a 2-3 quart pan, bring milk and 1 cup water just to a boil over medium-high heat. Stir in couscous; cover, remove from heat, and let stand until liquid has been absorbed (about 5 minutes). Keep warm; fluff occasionally with a fork.
Meanwhile, to onion mixture, add beans, broth, honey, ginger, cinnamon, saffron and white pepper. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Then reduce heat so mixture boils gently; cook, stirring occasionally for 5 minutes. Add apricots, cook, stirring gently, just until heated through (about 3 minutes).
To serve, spoon couscous onto a rimmed platter, top with bean mixture. Sprinkle with cilantro and sesame seeds, season with salt to taste.