Description
Inspired by the French “Cassoulet”, but replacing the usual meat variety with a warming medley of vegetables. This one is pure comfort in a bowl and as good for the soul as it is for your health! Don’t skip the breadcrumb topping! It’s easy to put together and adds a nice texture to the final dish!
Ingredients
Scale
For the stew:
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 cup leek, white and light green parts only, sliced (from 1 large leek or 2 small)
- 1 tsp salt, divided
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 1/2 cups mushrooms, sliced (about 8 oz.) – cremini, oyster, chanterelles, and maitake mushrooms all work very well
- 1 cup carrots, diced (about 3 carrots)
- 1 1/2 cups turnip, peeled and diced (about 1 large turnip)
- 2 teaspoon fresh thyme (or substitute with 1 tsp dried thyme)
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 tsp tamari or soy sauce
- 1/2 cup tomatoes, diced (about 2 tomatoes)
- 2 15 oz. cans cannellini beans (or 1 28 oz. can), drained and rinsed
- 2 1/2 cups vegetable broth, preferably low-sodium
- 2 1/2 cups dark leafy greens, packed, such as collard greens, Swiss chard, or kale, torn into bite size pieces (from 1 bunch greens)
- 1/2 cup parsley, roughly chopped
Breadcrumb Mixture
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1 tbsp fresh thyme (or 2 tsp dried thyme)
- 1 tbsp fresh chives, finely chopped
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
Instructions
- In a large dutch oven or pot, heat 2 tbsp olive oil over medium heat. Once hot, add the leek and 1/2 tsp salt, and sauté until the leeks become slightly translucent, about 3 minutes.
- To the pot, add garlic, carrots, turnip, mushrooms, and pepper, and sauté another 5-7 minutes until vegetables begin to brown. If the vegetables begin to stick to the bottom of the pan, deglaze with a splash of vegetable broth or water.
- Stir in the tomato paste and tamari/soy sauce and cook for one minute. Add in fresh tomatoes, thyme, white beans, dark leafy greens, and pour in two cups of broth. Allow the stew to come to a boil, then immediately reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered, for about 15 minutes. The liquid should reduce by about 1/4.
- Meanwhile, combine all ingredients for the breadcrumb mixture in a small bowl. Place the mixture in a non-stick pan and toast over medium-low heat until the breadcrumbs are golden brown. Remove the pan from heat and set aside.
- Taste the stew and season with the remaining salt, if needed. Add more broth if too much has evaporated. Serve in bowls and top each serving with a couple tablespoons of the breadcrumb mixture and a sprinkle of chopped parsley.
Notes
Possible substitutions:
- You can replace the leek with yellow onion, but the leek provides a more delicate, sweet flavor profile. It is truly the best.
- You can replace the turnip with potatoes, parsnips, or squash if you have trouble finding it, but the turnip is lighter and its slight bitterness cuts through the starchiness of the beans in a lovely way.
