Warming West African Peanut Chickpea Stew

I won't beat around the bush.

This is my favourite fall stew.  By a long shot. 

It brings together the warmth of cinnamon, chili, curry and ginger in a peanut cilantro sauce that will have you coming back for more.  Happily, this is one compulsion I can live with.

You can make this stew with any nut or seed butter you wish (I particularly like it with peanut), and toss in whatever vegetables you happen to have in the fridge.  I generally double the recipe so that our family of four can enjoy four meals from it.  (It freezes beautifully).

Warming West African Peanut Chickpea Stew

• 2 onions, peeled and chopped
• 1 cup fennel bulb, chopped (instructions here)
• 2 red bell peppers, sliced
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 4 cups low sodium vegetable broth
• 4 cups sweet potatoes (about 2 large), peeled and roughly cubed
• 1 large can diced tomatoes (28 fl. oz)
• 2 cans chickpeas (19 fl. oz each), thoroughly rinsed
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1 Tbsp fresh grated ginger
• 2 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp each: cumin, curry, cinnamon powder
• 1/4 cup pitted dried dates, chopped into small pieces (substitute dried apricot or golden raisins)
• 3 Tbsp natural peanut butter
• 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• Handful of peanuts for topping

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Warm a large saucepan over medium-low heat with olive oil.  Add onions, fennel, peppers and garlic. Cook for approximately 5 minutes.

Add all remaining ingredients except dates, peanut butter, cilantro and peanuts.

Bring mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to lowest setting and cover for 20 minutes. Stir in dates, peanut butter and cilantro. Mix well. Simmer for 5 more minutes and serve warm topped with chopped nuts and diced avocado as desired.

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Coincident with making my most recent batch of African stew, I came across this mouth-watering recipe by Eva on Kitchen Inspirations.  What a perfect pairing.