Vegan Moroccan Chickpea Sweet Potato Stew

recipe moved to littlethingsarebig.com

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Vegan Thai Green Curry with Cashews and Homemade Curry Paste

Recipe moved to littlethingsarebig.com

10 Soups to Warm Your Soul

Black Bean Butternut Squash Chili from WillCookforFriends.com

The beauty of soup its is supreme versatility. With just a few ingredients, a little heat and some spices you can transform limp, lifeless vegetables into a rich, hearty dinner. A few cans of beans and some kale morph into a stew that will feed the whole family for a week. 

Here is a roundup of some of my favorite soup recipes. What is your favorite soup recipe? 

You can make excellent soup with grocery store broth, but Make Your Own Vegetable Stock and you will never look back. 

Make this Black Bean Butternut Squash Chili over the weekend for a family dinner or Downton Abbey viewing party. Free Mr. Bates!

Sometimes you just need the simplicity of tomato soup. This gorgeous Vegan Creamy Tomato Soup gets its creamy texture from almond milk. 

Six ingredients and 30 minutes to make. There is no excuse not to whip up a pot of Curried Squash Lentil Coconut Soup.

Chickpea Rice Soup with a Little Kale from my vegan chef crush Post Punk Kitchen is the only soup you need to chase the chills (or the flu) away. It’s packed with goodness, vitamins and protein. 

One of my all-time favorite dishes, African Spicy Peanut Stew is my go-to when I need something super rich that will stick with me for a few hours. This recipe rocks my world. 

180 degrees from the Peanut Stew is this light, gorgeous, raw bright green Spring Pea Soup. The season is still a few months away, but tuck this recipe away for when the buds on the trees peak out from winter’s blanket.

White Bean Tuscan Kale Soup is a mainstay. Make a big pot and freeze in quart-sized bags and reheat whenever you need a quick dinner.

Just because it’s vegan doesn’t mean it can’t be rich and creamy. The potatoes, one of only 5 ingredients, give this Vegan Cream of Broccoli Soup its creamy texture.

This Red Lentil Sweet Potato Stew packs massive flavor and protein into a small bowl. 

{Kate}

Red Lentil Sweet Potato Stew

Red Lentil Sweet Potato Stew

Lentils are a poor woman's friend. When dining on a vegan budget I have discovered that these little powerhouses are one of my best friends. They offer a ton of nutrition packed into a little tiny legume, with fiber, folate, magnesium, and iron (good for your digestion, good for your heart), and lentils also supply the always-important-to-a-vegan-diet protein--almost 18 grams per cup.

This recipe is super simple, rich and hearty. The key to maximizing flavor is to use a homemade veggie stock, click here for the recipe, and bloom your spices in oil to coax out their flavor. Cooking your spices for a couple of minutes opens up the essential oils. Use this technique for all recipes that call for spices and you will taste a world of difference.

2 extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 Tbsp curry powder
1 diced large onion
1 tsp salt
Freshly ground black pepper
4 minced cloves garlic
2 Tbsp minced fresh ginger (optional but worth it if you can find it!)
2 peeled and diced sweet potatoes
2 peeled and diced carrots
1 celery stalk diced
1 diced (stemmed, seeded) red bell pepper
1 onion diced
1 1/2 cups rinsed red lentils (you can also use brown or green lentils)
6 cups vegetable stock
6 cups baby spinach or other greens
1 tsp red pepper flakes
Chopped fresh parsley
Chopped avocado

1. Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Cook cumin, turmeric and curry powder until fragrant, about 1 to 2 minutes. Cooking the spices is an important step because it "blooms" the spice and makes them more flavorful. 
2. Add onion, salt and pepper, and cook, stirring, until tender, about 6 minutes. Add garlic and ginger and cook, stirring, until tender, about 2 minutes. Add sweet potatoes and bell pepper and cook 3 minutes.
3. Add lentils and stock. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until lentils are tender, anywhere between 20 minutes and 1 hour. I like to let the soup simmer for a little longer so the lentils are soft and it turns into an almost split-pea-like consistency. Add greens, red pepper flakes, taste and season with salt and pepper to taste.
4. Top with parsley and avocado before serving.

{Kate}