Pure Hunger

Sometimes as I’m putting together a dish all I can think is that it is going to be one big effing disaster. During the time it took to slice and dice the ingredients for this dish, I was convinced the flavors were going to taste like one giant turd. I may have just committed foodie blog suicide by comparing a dish to a giant turd but that is honestly what I was afraid would happen. You read the ingredient list of apples, chickpeas, onion and curry spices and you can’t help but feel a fearful lump in your throat. So I’m slicing and chopping, roasting and mixing and praying to the domestic goddess in the sky that this dish turn out decent and not resemble anything turd-like. I’m happy to report it was phenomenal.

Ingredients

2.5-3 cups cooked chickpeas
1 13.5 oz can light coconut milk
3/4 cup red onion, chopped
1.5 cups celery, chopped
1-1.5 cups sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped
1-1.5 cups apple, peeled and chopped
1 bunch fresh collards (optional)
2 small-medium cloves garlic, minced
1.5 Tbsp grated ginger
1-1.5 Tbsp mild curry paste
2 tsp mustard seeds
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp turmeric
3/4 tsp sea salt

Which just shows I still have so much to learn about paring tastes, textures and flavors. It was sweet, creamy and followed the perfect profile for comfort food without any of the guilt.I was feeling adventurous and the book I found it in, Vive le Vegan!, has been a no fail trusted sidekick over and over. So in a leap of faith I grabbed all the ingredients and went for it. It also helped that I had just purchased a case of chickpeas at Costco and had some fresh collards that I wanted to add to a recipe just like this. The collards are the first produce from the garden this season and I’m so thrilled to be bringing home such fresh, home grown produce again. In the spirit of too many canned chickpeas and fresh produce I flew straight in the face of fear and came out with a happy belly.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In large, deep casserole dish, combine all ingredients.Stir until well combined. Cover and bake for 30 minutes.

Stir through, cover, and bake for another 30-40 minutes, until all vegetables are tender. Serve with a hearty bread.