Spicy Sweet Potato & Peanut Stew with Chickpeas

This recipe is borrowed from the very talented Dreena Burton.  Earthy spices, sweet potatoes, spicy ginger, and a bit of peanut butter pureed with whole, buttery chickpeas-- mmmmmm.....  Serve with brown rice or quinoa and a healthy salad.  

Yield: Makes 3-4 servings
Time: ~45 minutes

Ingredients: 

     2 teaspoons olive oil
     3 cups sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped
     1 cup onions, diced
     1/2 cup celery, diced
     2-3 large cloves of garlic, minced
     1/2 teaspoon sea salt
     2 teaspoons cumin seeds
     2 teaspoons ground coriander
     1/2 teaspoon paprika
     1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
     1 cup vegetable stock
     1 1/2 cups water
     3 tablespoons fresh ginger, grated
     1 tablespoon peanut butter
     1 cup cooked chickpeas (canned is okay-- just be sure to rinse and drain first) 
     2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
        lime wedges to garnish (optional)
        fresh cilantro leaves to garnish (optional)


Directions: 


Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat.  Add sweet potatoes, onion, celery, garlic, salt, and all spices, and stir to combine.  Cover and cook 5-7 minutes, stirring once or twice. 
Add stock, water, and HALF of the ginger (reserving the rest).  Stir to combine, and increase heat to bring stew to a boil.  Once boiling, reduce heat to medium-low, cover the pot, and simmer for ~15 minutes or so, until the sweet potatoes have completely softened.
Stir in remaining ginger and peanut butter.  With an immersion blender (if you have one), briefly puree the soup until it is just smooth but keeps some texture.  If you do not have one, wait until the soup cools off a bit, transfer to a blender, blend until just smooth, and return to pot.  Make sure you don't fill the blender up more than about halfway at a time-- it is prone to splash out!  
Stir in chickpeas and allow to heat back up if you used a regular blender.  Then stir in lime juice and serve with the lime wedges and cilantro leaves.


Very slightly adapted from Eat, Drink & Be Vegan, by Dreena Burton. (Arsenal Pulp Press, Vancouver, BC, 2007).