Lentil Mushroom & Kale Stew

Lentil Mushroom & Kale Stew

Phew! After a full week on the road it feels damn good to be home with my boys, getting my hands dirty in the greenhouse and fueling up on nourishing food. Thank you all for your patience while I was away (hopefully you were still able to find some yummy recipes from the archives to keep you going in my absence.) I've got a recap post coming up in the next few weeks about my incredible road trip through west Texas, but in the meantime I'm ready to settle back into routine and share some tasty recipes with you all. This stew is exactly what my body was craving after 7 days of beef jerky, trail mix, cheap gas station coffee and Reese's Peanut Butter Cups (when in Rome right?) I have no regrets with my dietary choices on the road but man, this body of mine is getting older and can't stomach some of my old favorite snacks the same way. Luckily, this stew set me straight and I'm already feeling like myself again. This is a very economical meal that's as nourishing as it is tasty. I hope you all love it as much as we do. It pairs well with a glass of wine and some crusty bread. Cheers from Tumbleweed Farm

Lentil Mushroom and Kale Stew

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Serves: 4

Ingredients

  • 1 cup dried French Green Lentils
  • 4 cups homemade vegetable stock (or low sodium store-bought stock)
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 small yellow onion, chopped
  • 1 leek, chopped (white and pale green parts only)
  • 1 pound assorted mushrooms, chopped
  • 6 cloves of garlic, chopped
  • hefty pinch of fine sea salt
  • 3/4 cup dry white wine
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream (may substitute with full fat canned coconut milk for a dairy free version)
  • 1 cup chopped kale
  • salt and pepper to taste

Preparation

  1. Rinse the lentils and place them in a stock pot with 3 cups of the vegetable stock (reserving the remaining 1 cup for later) and the bay leaves. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium low, cover and cook until the lentils are tender and have absorbed much of the liquid, about 20-25 minutes. Remove from the heat and discard the bay leaves.
  2. Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium high heat. Add the onion and leek, cook, stirring occasionally until lightly browned and fragrant. Add the mushrooms and a hefty pinch of salt, continue to cook undisturbed, until the mushrooms soften up and turn a deep golden brown on the bottom, about 3 minutes. Give the pot a good stir and continue to cook the mushrooms until all sides are deeply browned. Add the garlic and cook for about 1 minute longer. Stir in the wine and deglaze the pan by scraping up all the flavorful brown bits on the bottom of the pan. Cook until most of the wine has evaporated.
  3. Reduce the heat to medium low and add the cream, remaining 1 cup of vegetable stock, cooked lentils and kale. Cook until the kale wilts a bit and the stew has thickened and warmed through. Season to taste with plenty of salt and pepper and serve warm.

Notes

*Use this recipe as a guide *Adjust measurements and ingredients as necessary

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