A whole bag of kale and you know it’s going to go off in the fridge if you don’t find other ways of using it! Well outside of having a green smoothie or juicing it which will help to use up at least half a bag, I quite like adding it to soups and stews right at the end of their cooking time. This means that the bitterness that greens can often give doesn’t happen and you mostly get the flavour of the soup or stew with the added nutritional benefit of adding greens. I’m one for using up the left overs in the house, and I can generally find a half tin of baked beans left over, which I tend to throw in as well. Thyme this week was available in the supermarket so I added it to see what it would taste like, it’s these simple experiments that help you to develop your palate and explore foods.
Today I’ve made a very beany butternut squash stew
- 1/3 butternut squash chopped
- 1 red onion finely chopped
- 2 cloves of garlic crushed
- 1 tin of tomatoes
- ½ tin of baked beans optional!
- 1 good handful of Organic Edamame and Mung Bean Fettuccine
- 1 large carrot, ¼ went to the whippet but the rest definitely went into the stew chopped
- 1 tblsp fresh thyme chopped
- 1 can of chickpeas
- handful of kale chopped with no stalks
- a dash of cayenne just a bit now to warm you up on these cold days
- 3 tablespoons of tomato paste.
- 1 pint of vegetable stock
I put a little bit of water into the pan and start to cook the onion off in water, then added the garlic crushed and cooked them both together until well cooked and transparent.
Add the fresh herbs, and tomato paste, the squash, a dash of cayenne, all the beans, and tinned tomatoes. Allow to cook for a few minutes then add in the vegetable stock. It’s all pretty simplistic really, nothing difficult as usual just a one pot meal. Cook for about 30 minutes until the butternut squash is well cooked.
Once ready add in the kale and fettuccine and allow to cook for about 5 minutes, then it’s ready, season to taste as always.