Harvest Veggie Stew with Quinoa

Fall has fully arrived so it’s time for some hearty but easy to make stews, that are both comforting and tasty. There are millions of ways to make a great stew and you should really give some a try, like this Harvest Veggie Stew with Quinoa.

I’m pretty much straightforward with the food I’m eating. I don’t like to make complicated recipes nor I enjoy to buy obscure ingredients that I will never use again. I do like to use whole food into my cooking, with lots of produce, grains, and greens.

And now that the weather is getting colder by the minute, I do enjoy eating something hearty and comforting at the same time.

This stew has a lot of basic ingredients, like veggies, quinoa (but you can use rice if you don’t have quinoa) and spinach. But I do recommend you to give quinoa a try. It’s dead simple to cook it (just like you would cook rice) and it’s even better for you. Nonetheless, I use both quinoa and rice (white and brown) in my recipes.

You don’t even have to use the same ingredients I used. Use a bunch of veggies, use kale if you don’t have spinach and rice if you don’t have quinoa. I’m sure it will taste delicious either way.

Ingredients:

• 1 small zucchini
• 1 small eggplant
• one big tomato
• 4-5 sprigs of thyme
• 1 onion
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 2 carrots
• 1 bell pepper
• 150 g of pumpkin
• 150 g of cooked chickpeas
• 2 big handfuls of spinach
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil
• 200 ml of warm water
• 200 g of quinoa

Because I used only vegetables in this stew, without any meat, it will cook in no time. Prep your veggies: slice the carrots and garlic, chop the onion, and cut the pepper, pumpkin, zucchini, and eggplant into cubes. Don’t chop the vegetables too thin, otherwise, they will become too mushy. And don’t stir too much. Let them steaming on low heat with the lid on.

In a pot, heat up the olive oil and add in the carrots and onion. Saute for 5 minutes and add the rest of the veggies.

In the meantime, boil enough water to cover a big tomato. Submerge it into the water and let it sit for 5 minutes, or until the peel comes right off. Take the tomato out and chop it. Set it aside.

Rinse the quinoa under cold water.

Pour it into a smaller pot, cover with water, add salt to taste and bring to a boil. When it starts boiling, reduce the heat to low, cover the pot with a lid and let it cook for 15 minutes, or until the water has disappeared and the quinoa is cooked.

Season the veggies with salt and pepper, add the sprigs of thyme, the water, and the tomato.

In the last 5 minutes, add the rinsed chickpeas and the spinach. Put the lid back on and let the spinach wilt from the heat. Try not to stir too much because the vegetables with become mushy.

When everything is cooked through, serve the stew warm with quinoa.

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Harvest Veggie Stew

Yield: 3 servings

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

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Ingredients

• 1 small zucchini
• 1 small eggplant
• 1 big tomato
• 4-5 sprigs of thyme
• 1 onion
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 2 carrots
• 1 bell pepper
• 150 g of pumpkin
• 150 g of cooked chickpeas
• 2 big handfuls of spinach
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil
• 200 ml of warm water
• 200 g of quinoa

Instructions

1. Because I used only vegetables in this stew, without any meat, it will cook in no time. Prep your veggies: slice the carrots and garlic, chop the onion, and cut the pepper, pumpkin, zucchini, and eggplant into cubes. Don't chop the vegetables too thin, otherwise, they will become too mushy. And don't stir too much. Let them steaming on low heat with the lid on.
2. In a pot, heat up the olive oil and add in the carrots and onion. Saute for 5 minutes and add the rest of the veggies.
3. In the meantime, boil enough water to cover a big tomato. Submerge it into the water and let it sit for 5 minutes, or until the peel comes right off. Take the tomato out and chop it. Set it aside.
4. Rinse the quinoa under cold water.
5. Pour it into a smaller pot, cover with water, add salt to taste and bring to a boil. When it starts boiling, reduce the heat to low, cover the pot with a lid and let it cook for 15 minutes, or until the water has disappeared and the quinoa is cooked.
6. Season the veggies with salt and pepper, add the sprigs of thyme, the water, and the tomato.
7. In the last 5 minutes, add the rinsed chickpeas and the spinach. Put the lid back on and let the spinach wilt from the heat. Try not to stir too much because the vegetables with become mushy.
8. When everything is cooked through, serve the stew warm with quinoa.