Moroccan Vegetable Stew

Oh... So... Yummy...
And good for you!
How often does that happen?
Not enough folks... not enough.

This vegetable stew has all the vegetables that taste great together, in a mixture that is sweet, savory, spicy with just the right amount of crunch from the almonds.  You can eat it like a stew on it's own, or over couscous. I just had it again for lunch, and I am now in love with this mixture.

It made a huge crockpot full, which is a bit much for the two of us right now, but I have frozen four portions, plus put 4 portions aside for lunches this week, plus what we ate last night.  I am so happy that I have this in there.

This recipe was first published in Sunset magazine in January 2006. I thought it sounded great, but was concerned that reviewers gave it a '4' out of '5' stars.  When reading the reviews, I could see that some people thought the stew was too bland.  I've made some changes to the original, and taken some "Moroccan" liberties in order to spice it up a bit more.  My recipe is NOT bland... you will like it!  Hopefully you would give it "5 stars" if I had that kind of rating system! 

This may seem like a long list of ingredients, but it's all veggies and spices!

Serves 6-8

Ingredients

3-6 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed with the side of a knife

1 Tbsp smoked paprika

1 Tbsp ground cumin

1-3 teaspoon cayenne, depending on how hot you like 

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 cups vegetable (or chicken) broth

4 carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch lengths

2 cups diced peeled eggplant

2 1/2 cups sliced (1/2 in. thick) zucchini

2 cups cauliflower florets

1 cup diced onion
2 cans (14 1/2 oz. each) stewed tomatoes

1 can (15 oz.) garbanzos, drained and rinsed

3/4 cup dried currants, or chopped up raisins

1 cup chopped toasted almonds

1-2 tablespoon kosher salt
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
Fresh pepper

Preparation

In a slow-cooker (at least 5 qt.), add all the ingredients. It filled my crockpot to the brim!

Once I stirred it thoroughly to combine it fit just fine though!

Cook on high until vegetables are tender to bite and flavors are blended, 4 to 6 hours.

Ladle about 3 cups of the vegetable mixture into a blender. Holding lid down with a towel and taking care to avoid steam, whirl until smooth. Return purée to slow-cooker and stir to blend. Serve over couscous, or as a soup, or stew on it's own.

Meat Eaters, here is another Moroccan recipe that is one of my favorites!
Moroccan Pot Roast