Chard and Chickpea Stew

Twas the night before Thanksgiving and the house was astir.

Baking an Caramel Apple Pie

Pureeing Yams for Roasted Garlic Yams.

With all of this hustle and bustle I wanted to make something simple.

However, I also wanted to have something vegetarian so that we could indulge in endless turkey for the next few days/weeks.

Chard and Chickpea Stew
Inspired by a Recipe from Eats Well With Others.
Swiss Chard, Chickpea and Tamarand Stew.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb (stalks and leaves), cut into 3/8-inch slices
  
  
  
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
• 2 teaspoon caraway seeds
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 14 oz canned chopped petite tomatoes, with their juices
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 can chickpeas, drained
• 1 1/2 tsp coriander
• 3 tablespoons Black Bean Garlic Sauce
• salt and black pepper
• 3/4 cup quinoa
• 1 tbsp coconut oil
• 1 1/2 cups water

Directions:

• Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil and blanch the chard for 2 minutes.
• Drain in a colander.
• Put the onion, caraway seeds and olive oil in a large heavy pan and saute on medium heat for about 10 minutes, or until the onion is soft and golden.
  
  
  
• Add the tomato paste and stir as you cook it for about a minute.
• Add the canned tomatoes, water, sugar, chickpeas, ground coriander, chard and some salt and pepper.
• Add the black bean garlic sauce.
• Bring to a boil, then cover with a lid and leave to simmer for about 30 minutes.
• When ready, the dish should have the consistency of a thick soup.
• Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed.
• While the stew is cooking, put the quinoa , coconut oil and a bit of salt in a medium pan and set on a medium heat.
• Stir to coat the quinoa with the oil.
• Add the water and boil, then cover the pan with a tight fitting lit and leave to simmer on a low flame for 20 minutes.
• Remove from the heat and leave covered for 5 minutes.
• When ready to serve, spoon the quinoa into shallow soup bowl, creating a crater in the center.
• Ladle some of the soup stew into the middle of each quinoa hole.

Happy Thanksgiving.