Quick and Easy Vegan Slow Cooking (21 page)

1.
Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat and sauté the onion through the celery until they are softened, aromatic, and starting to brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer to the slow cooker.

2.
Add the eggplant through the juice and stir to combine. The mixture will look damp but not overly liquid.

3.
Cover, set heat to LOW, and cook for 5 hours, or until the vegetables are tender. Stir after 4 hours, if you wish.

4.
Taste and season with the salt and pepper as required.

NOTE
: If you don’t have tomato juice, use 1 cup vegetable stock and 1 tablespoon tomato paste instead.

Moroccan Spiced Vegetable Stew with Couscous

if not using couscous

I
’M FASCINATED BY
the Moroccan tagine—not the food itself but the volcano-shaped cooking pot it is made in. I started looking into the spices used in Moroccan cooking and thought that instead of the tagine I don’t have, I would use the slow cooker I do have to recreate a Moroccan-inspired dish. I think it works really well, with warming spices and not too much heat, luscious plump raisins, and tender chickpeas. I have no idea if it tastes like anything you’d get in Morocco or cooked in a tagine, but it is very satisfying. You’ll need to pull the aromatics out of the stew at the end of cooking, so poke the whole cloves into the pieces of ginger to make them easier to find when the time comes to remove them. Alternatively, make a cheesecloth bag with all the whole flavorings inside so they will be easier to take out. If you don’t have enough liquid after draining, use water or stock to make up the 1½ cups. If you don’t want to serve with the couscous as written, discard the liquid drained (or save it for something else) and make the Israeli Couscous with Almonds and Parsley (
page 218
) as your side dish.

Serves 4 to 6
Preparation time: 30 minutes, divided

1 onion, finely chopped

2 stalks celery chopped into ½-inch pieces

2 medium carrots cut into ½-inch pieces

1 cup dry chickpeas, soaked 8 hours or overnight, drained, and rinsed

¹/
₃cup golden raisins

6 cups vegetable stock, store-bought or homemade (
page 43
)

1 teaspoon coriander

1 teaspoon cumin

½ teaspoon cardamom

½ teaspoon turmeric

¼ teaspoon black pepper

¹/
₈teaspoon cayenne, optional

2 bay leaves

3 whole peeled garlic cloves

One 2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and sliced ½-inch thick

1 jalapeño pepper, halved and seeded

One 3-inch cinnamon stick

1 teaspoon whole cloves

Salt and black pepper

¹/
₃cup fresh flat-leaf (Italian) parsley, finely chopped

4 Roma tomatoes, seeded and roughly chopped

1½ cups couscous

*To ensure the dish is gluten free, if necessary, please check all packaged ingredients, as noted on
page 39
.

1.
Combine the onion through the whole cloves in the slow cooker; stir well.

2.
Cover, set heat to LOW, and cook for 8 hours, or until the chickpeas are tender.

3.
Drain, reserving 1½ cups of the liquid, and return the vegetables, chickpeas, and additional liquid to the slow cooker.

4.
Remove the bay leaves, garlic cloves, ginger pieces, jalapeño pieces, cinnamon stick, and whole cloves. Taste and season with the salt and pepper as required. Stir in the parsley and tomatoes, cover, and let stand while preparing the couscous.

5.
Heat the reserved 1½ cups of liquid to boiling in the microwave or in a saucepan on the stovetop. Combine with the couscous, cover, and stand for 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork just prior to serving alongside the stew.

Tomato, Barley, and Lentil Stew

T
HIS IS SIMPLE,
hearty, warming, and filling. You could add more stock if you prefer and make it into a soup, but I like it as a stew. Serve alongside hearty homemade or good-quality store-bought bread, with potatoes, or by itself. If you reheat leftovers, you may need to add stock; the lentils and barley will absorb the liquid over time.

Serves 4 to 6
Preparation time: 15 minutes

½ large onion, finely chopped

1 celery stalk, finely chopped

1 medium carrot, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

½ teaspoon paprika

½ teaspoon ground fennel seeds

1 teaspoon cumin

½ cup pearl barley

½ cup brown lentils

One 15-ounce can diced tomatoes in juice, undrained

4 cups vegetable stock, store-bought or homemade (
page 43
)

Salt and black pepper

1.
Combine the onion through the stock in the slow cooker.

2.
Cover, set heat to LOW, and cook for 7 hours, or until the lentils and barley are tender and most of the liquid is absorbed.

3.
Taste and season with the salt and pepper as required.

Mediterranean Vegetable and Bean Stew

B
URSTING WITH PRODUCE
and tasting of summer, yet warm, comforting, and substantial enough to stand up to any chill in the air, this stew is perfect when served with a loaf of crusty bread or even Spelt Crackers (
page 241
) for dunking. It’s easy to assemble; you can forget it as it cooks. I like the visual appeal of varied bean sizes and shapes. Use whatever beans you have; you want a variety of them totaling 1 cup dry. Soak the beans separately or the black beans will turn everything purple! This is extra nice if you drizzle with a little homemade or store-bought pesto for a true Mediterranean touch.