Fall Vegetable Stew

I wrote my first cookbook  twenty years ago, and some of those recipes are still in my regular rotation of family favorites. My African Groundnut Stew recipe was named after groundnut, the name commonly used for peanut in Africa.  Like all of the recipes in that book, my focus was to use the most flavorful, nutrient-dense, antioxidant-rich foods I could find.  While this recipe checked all of those boxes, I wasn’t sure how well this recipe would go over, as the combination of ingredients seemed a bit unusual, even to me.

As it turns out, this recipe became such a hit that I made it every time I had the opportunity to prepare a sample recipe at a book signing or cooking class.  It was very popular, and I still receive compliments to this day. I have made a few variations in today’s version based on what I did and did not have on hand.  But that’s another reason I really love this recipe; it’s very easy to make substitutions and still tastes great.

Fall Vegetable Stew (Vegetarian)
Yield: 2 quarts 
Serves: Eight 1-cup servings

This thick and robust stew is hearty enough for a main course. You can add extra broth for a thinner soup. It's loaded with both protein and fiber.

Ingredients
1 Tbsp. olive oil 
1 medium red onion, finely chopped 
4 large shishito peppers, halved lengthwise, seeded, and thinly sliced crosswise (or 1 medium green bell pepper, seeded and chopped)
1 medium carrot, peeled, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced crosswise
½ cup chopped celery
1 Tbsp. Melissa’s chopped garlic
2 Tbsp. Melissa’s chopped ginger
1 Tbsp. curry powder
1 cup tomato sauce (or 1 large tomato chopped)
4 cups fat-free chicken or vegetable broth for vegan version
12-ounce Melissa’s Okinawan or regular sweet potato, peeled and cut into ½-inch dice
1 10-ounce package Melissa’s shelled edamame, or 1 (9-ounce) pkg Melissa’s steamed beans or lentils
3 Tbsp. creamy or crunchy natural peanut or almond butter 
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro 
1/2 pound baby spinach leaves or other fresh greens such as kale, torn into bite-size pieces
Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Heat olive oil in a 4-quart saucepan or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion, pepper, carrot, celery and sauté until soft and translucent, for about 5 minutes.

Add garlic, ginger, and curry powder and sauté until fragrant; do not brown garlic. Add the tomatoes and cook, uncovered, until tomato juices are slightly reduced, about 3 minutes.

Add the broth and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to low and add sweet potatoes. Simmer for about 5 minutes or until tender. Whisk in nut butter until dissolved into sauce. Cook until just heated through for about 2 minutes. Stir in spinach or kale. (If using kale, cook 4 to 5 minutes longer). Add edamame or beans and stir until combined. Stir in cilantro. Season to taste with salt and pepper.