February 22, 2016

Hearty Beet Greens & Chickpea Stew

Budget Friendly, Dairy Free, Gluten Free, Grain Free, Mains, Recipes, Vegan, Vegetarian

Cold weather calls for stews. That’s one of those absolute facts of life.

A stew is a source of cosy-ness and comfort, and I love how absolutely fuss free this chickpea stew is. It’s everything I could ever hope for and more! It’s hearty, flavourful, and warming, and is one of those recipes that you can cook up a batch and just keep in the fridge to enjoy throughout the week, especially on those nights where the thought of cooking up a meal from scratch is the last thing you want to do. You know what I mean, no matter how much you love to cook, we’ve all been there!

We’re using beet greens for this stew. Yep, those gorgeous greens that you get when you buy beets sometimes, and most people just throw away. They’re an amazingly nutritious dark leafy green, but for some crazy reason most of us never really use it! I’m not the biggest fan of eating it raw as it can be quite bitter, but when cooked with the warming flavours of this stew the greens get a whole new life to them.

If you don’t have any beet greens, rainbow or swiss chard would do perfectly here, and kale and spinach if you really had to. Just make sure that if you go down the spinach route, you only at it at the very end so it doesn’t wilt too much.

Hearty Chickpea & Beet Greens Stew

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Prep time

30 mins

Cook time

25 mins

Total time

55 mins

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients

1 aubergine (eggplant), cut into 1.5 cm / 0.5” cubes
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 small onion, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons sweet paprika
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
400g or 1 can cooked chickpeas
1 cup (150g) cherry tomatoes, halved
4 tablespoons tomato paste (look for sugar free varieties)
½ cup veggie broth or water
1 bunch beetroot greens, leaves chopped and stems discarded
1 lemon, juiced
Coconut oil, for cooking
Chopped coriander (cilantro) leaves, to serve
Cooked quinoa, rice, or millet, to serve

Instructions

Start by placing your chopped aubergine (eggplant) in a colander over a bowl or sink and tossing with the 1 teaspoon salt. Leave to “sweat” for 30 minutes then rinse and pat dry before using. This is optional, but helps get rid of any bitterness and also keeps it from getting soggy and oily in the pan. If you’re short for time or your aubergine is small and fresh, skip it.*
Heat ½ tablespoon of coconut oil in a large skillet and cook your onions over medium-low heat until softened. Add your garlic and spices and cook for a further minute before adding in your aubergine (eggplant), chickpeas, cherry tomatoes, and tomato paste along with ½ cup water or broth.
Simmer, covered, for 15-20 minutes or until the aubergine (eggplant) is tender. If the stew still looks too water-y let cook uncovered for a few minutes until liquid reduces.
Stir in your beet greens and lemon juice and take off the heat, letting the residual heat wilt the leaves.
Taste and adjust any seasoning.
Serve hot with some cooked quinoa, extra slices of lemon, and the chopped coriander (cilantro) leaves.

Notes

*If you haven’t salted the eggplant before cooking, add in some salt along with the spices.