I'll start a cooking challenge thread for this week! The theme this week's Irish (for St. Patty's day.
On an unrelated note, I made a ridiculously delicious crockpot meal for a potluck today, and was genuinely sad when there was none left over for me to take home! It's vegetarian (actually vegan, too - and I think gluten free?) and really freaking delicious:
From
here
Slow cooker African peanut stew recipe
Serves 4-6
Ingredients:
34 garlic cloves
1 cup loosely packed fresh cilantro leaves and stems
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
2 inch or so chunk of fresh ginger, peeled
2 heaping tablespoons peanut butter (creamy or chunky, I used creamy)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper (cayenne)
1 tablespoon curry powder
1/4 cup dark brown sugar (light brown is just fine, too)
3/4 teaspoon salt
Fresh ground pepper
1 (14.5 ounce) can lite coconut milk
2 good-sized sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped into bite-sized pieces
1 large sweet onion, chopped
1 large red bell pepper, or 2 small ones, chopped
1 (15-19 ounces) can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
Directions:
In a blender or food processor add garlic cloves, cilantro, ginger, tomatoes, peanut butter, cumin, cinnamon, ground red pepper and curry powder. Blend until everything is nicely pureed. It will look very thick and pasty.
In the slow cooker, add the garbanzo beans, chopped onions, red bell peppers, and sweet potatoes. Add the peanut sauce mixture, brown sugar and the coconut milk and gently stir to incorporate all of the ingredients.
Turn the slow cooker on low and cook for six to eight hours
Serve with rice and top with fresh cilantro and sliced green onions.
It sounds (and looks) like a weird combo of ingredients, but it's really, really good over rice. And it looks like a ton of ingredients, but a lot are things you definitely have already, like sugar and spices. Man. I really want some more of this.