Moroccan Stew

Winter is the perfect time for homemade soups and stews! We often celebrate Soup Sundays and Meatless Mondays. This hearty dish is great for either – when I start frying the onions and garlic, and then add the spices, I often get members of my family gathering in the kitchen to find out what’s cooking!! We like to serve ours with fried bread – a little olive oil in a non-stick pan works perfectly – you can even add a sprinkle of garlic powder (when I cook stews, I always cut up fresh garlic).

2 teaspoons olive oil
1 cup of chopped onions
1/2 cup of diced celery
1/2 cup of chopped pepper (any colour)
1 clove of garlic
3 cups of broth (I use my homemade turkey or chicken or ham broth) but, vegetable broth is a great option to keep it “vegan”
3 cups of cubed sweet potatoes
1 can (28 oz) or 6 (or 3 cup) chopped fresh tomatoes (any kind)
1 can (15 oz) of chickpeas or dried 1 cup of dried chickpeas soaked overnight or prepared in an instant pot
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 teaspoons of grated fresh ginger
1 teaspoon of ground cumin
1 teaspoon of curry powder
1 teaspoon of ground coriander seed
1 teaspoon of chili powder
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/4 teaspoon of black pepper
1/2 cup of pitted, chopped dates
2 tablespoons of creamy natural peanut butter
2 tablespoons of chopped fresh cilantro

Heat the olive oil in a large soup or stew pot over medium/high heat. Sweat the onions, celery, peppers and garlic – this usually takes about 3 minutes. Stir the whole time.
Put the peanut butter, dates and cilantro aside and add all the rest of the ingredients. I like to add the spices first – let them become aromatic and then add everything else. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and cover and simmer for 25 minutes (so that the potatoes are soft). Stir about every 5 minutes.
Stir in the dates, peanut butter and cilantro. Mix it really well so you don’t get lumps of peanut butter or dates. Simmer for 5 more minutes. Serve hot with fried bread.

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