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Arizona Winter Vegetable Stew

This stew is a lighter version of a traditional winter stew, perfect for Arizona winters where the weather doesn't get too cold. It is pleasantly sweet, with notes of sour and spice, pulled together with an earthiness that you would come to expect from root vegetables.
Prep Time1 hour
Cook Time2 hours 30 minutes
Course: Soup
Cuisine: American
Keyword: gluten free, vegan, vegetarian
Servings: 6 servings

Ingredients

Broth

  • 6 orange carrots
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 1/2 yellow onion, with skin
  • 10 curry leaves, soaked in olive oil (optional)
  • 1 stalk celery
  • 3 mushroom stems (portobello or shiitake are best)
  • 5 cloves, whole
  • 1/3 cup honey
  • 1/8 cup salt (or to taste)

For the Stew

  • 2 leeks cut in half, thinly slice
  • 3 turnips peeled, cut into 1/2"-1" cubes
  • 3 carrots (any color) sliced
  • 3 Idaho potato (any non-waxy variety is fine) peeled, cut into 1/2"-1" cubes
  • 1 lb lentils, dried either green or red is fine
  • 4 tbsp pumpkin seeds salted

For the Carrot Pickle

  • 1/3 c white wine vinegar
  • 1/3 c white sugar
  • 1/3 c kosher salt
  • 10 cloves, whole
  • 1 orange

Spices (all to taste)

  • Sumac
  • Smoked Paprika
  • Cayenne Pepper
  • Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • Non-Dairy Butter (Earth Balance) OPTIONAL
  • salt
  • pepper

Instructions

For the Broth

  • Soak curry leaves in olive oil for 1 hour, or until rehydrated and tender.
  • Fill stock pot 2/3 full of water. Salt until water tastes, well, lightly salty.
  • Chop carrots into 2-3" chunks. Add carrots, onion, mushroom stems, garlic, celery, cloves, and curry leaves to water.
  • Bring water and vegetables to a boil, and then lower temperature and simmer for 1-2 hours, or until desired flavor intensity is reached. Broth should have a noticeable orange color and strong carrot flavor. Add additional salt at end of cooking process if needed.
  • Strain broth.
  • Add 1/3 cup honey, stir to combine. You may need more or less honey, depending on your taste. You should only able to lightly taste the honey - it's main task is to sweeten the broth, and balance the spice that is coming.

For the Leeks

  • Cook leeks as directed on package. Salt water to taste. Drain leeks, and season with salt (if needed) and sumac to taste (flavor should be pronounced, but you should still be able to taste the leeks). Set aside.

For the Turnips

  • Peel the turnips, and cut into 1/2"-1" cubes.
  • Fill a saucepan 2/3 full of water. Salt to taste (until water is slightly salty). Boil turnips until just slightly soft (3-5 minutes) - they should still be firm and slightly crunchy to eat.
  • Sprinkle salt (if needed), and very lightly dust with sumac. Set aside.

For the Carrots

  • Peel and slice carrots in 1/3" slices.
  • In a saucepan, place vinegar, sugar, salt, and cloves.
  • Zest 1 orange. Add zest to saucepan. Juice orange. Add juice and orange halves into saucepan. Cover with water. Heat mixture, and stir until sugar and salt are dissolved.
  • Place carrot slices in mixture, and cook for 15 minutes, or until flavor is imparted into carrots.
  • Drain carrots, and set aside.

For the Leeks

  • Clean leeks. Slice in half length-wise, and slice into thin slices.
  • Coat with extra virgin olive oil, and season with salt.
  • Roast in 350 degree oven for 20-40 minutes, or until leeks are slightly brown. Season with additional salt if needed. Set aside.

For the Potatoes

  • Peel potatoes, and cut into 1/2"-1" cubes.
  • Coat cubes in extra virgin olive oil, and season with salt. Dust potatoes with smoked paprika and cayenne pepper to taste (ratio and amount will depend on how spicy you want the potatoes) - taste your mix before adding to potatoes.
  • Roast potatoes in oven at 350 degrees until potatoes are cooked and slightly brown on the outside. Set aside

Assemble the Soup

  • Add each ingredient to the broth - you can add less of a particular ingredient to manipulate the flavors if you want. For example, if you don't like pickled things, you don't have to add all of the carrots. Want less carbs? Add less of the potatoes (add more lentils and turnips).
  • Taste and salt final stew, if needed. If additional richness is desired, stir in non-dairy butter or olive oil to taste. Right before serving, top with salted pumpkin seeds for texture.

Notes

If you are feeling particularly brave and have the necessary equipment, cooking the turnips in oil/butter sous vide at 183 degrees for around 1 hour is a great alternative - and, it's "set and forget" so you can focus on other things!