MAFÉ: SENEGALESE GROUNDNUT STEW (VEGAN)

I *love* stews and soups. This is one of my all-time favourite stews and I don't know why I haven't shared it here! It's so delicious and versatile. I typically make this vegan version unless meat-eater friends are coming over then I make it with lamb, chicken, venison, elk, etc. I've never made it with fish but I think it would be superb!

Use any vegetables you've got or want to use. Swap the sweet potatoes with a winter squash like butternut, kabocha or acorn. Swap the meat for tempeh or add in sliced boiled eggs just before serving. The variations are endless! For the brave of tongue, add in a chopped habanero while sautéing the vegetables.

MAFÉ: SENEGALESE GROUNDNUT STEW (VEGAN)

makes: 6-8 servings

- kernels from 1 ear of corn (or approx. 3/4 cup corn kernels)

- 2 small sweet potatoes, peeled and chunked

- 1 med. potato, chunked

- 3 carrots, chunked

- 2 cups cauliflower florets

- 1 cup young shiitake mushrooms (or 1 cup any mushrooms)

- 2 cups diced capsicum

- 3 cups chopped kale (or any greens)

- 2 cups chopped or lightly crushed tomatoes

- 1/2 cup peanut butter

- 2 leeks, sliced (omit if not available)

- 1 large onion, diced

- 1 tbsp. minced ginger

- 1 tbsp. minced garlic

- 1 tbsp. fresh thyme (or 1 bay leaf, or 1 tsp. dried thyme)

- 1 tbsp. coconut oil (or any oil of choice, not olive oil)

- 4-5 cups water (or vegetable broth)

- 1-2 tbsp. salt, adjust to taste

- 2 tsp. red chile powder (adjust to taste)

- 1 lemon, juiced

- garnishes (as many as you wish): sliced boiled eggs, chopped peanuts, fried onions, parsley, cilantro, sliced chiles, flaked coconut

1. On medium-low, heat the oil in a heavy bottomed large pan. Add the onions, leeks, garlic, and ginger and sauté until translucent.
2. Turn the heat to medium and add the carrots, potatoes, sweet potatoes and kale and sauté for 3-4 minutes. Add the rest of the vegetables and sauté for 5-7 minutes. Turn the heat up to high, add the water (or broth) and the thyme (or bay leaf). Once everything starts to bubble, turn the heat down to medium.
3. Add the tomatoes, peanut butter, chile powder, and salt. Let everything cook for 10-15 minutes until the vegetables are cooked, stirring occasionally. Adjust salt and spice to taste.
4. Turn the heat off, stir in the lemon juice, and let the stew rest for 10 minutes.
5. Serve over rice or bread and garnishes of choice.

BALSAMIC ROASTED TOMATO SOUP

I don't much care for raw tomatoes, but I love them cooked into sauces, tarts, roasted and tossed into a salad or in sandwiches, or in this soup that I've been making for years. I make it so often, I don't know why I haven't written the recipe here until now.

Anyway, this gorgeous soup is a beautiful colour and so light. It's vegan, gluten-free, low fat and low carb. And since it practically cooks itself in the oven, it's perfect for summer. The high heat roasting really deepens the flavours of all the vegetables including the onion and garlic. And it softens the black pepper so when you blend it, the peppery flavour really gets into the soup. So delicious!

Balsamic Roasted Tomato Soup

makes: 4 large servings

- 1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into chunks

- 1 large carrot, peeled and cut into chunks
- 1 (28-ounce) can whole tomatoes
- 1 cup coarsely chopped onion
- 5 garlic cloves
- 2 cups water (or vegetable broth), divided
- 2 tsp sugar
- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon tamari (or regular) soy sauce
- 1 tbsp coarsely ground black pepper (Tellicherry pepper works best)
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 450 F/230 C.
2. Put the tomatoes (and their liquid), sweet potato, onion, garlic and black pepper in a lightly greased, deep oven-proof pan. Mix 1 cup of water, sugar, vinegar, and soy sauce in a bowl and pour the mixture over the vegetables. Push the vegetables into the pan so they are more or less submerged in the liquid. Bake at 450 F/230 C for 50-60 minutes or until vegetables are cooked.
3. Remove the vegetables from the oven and cool. Add to a blender jar along with the olive oil  and blend until smooth, adding the remaining 1 cup water as needed to get the desired consistency. Taste and adjust salt and sugar.
4. Serve chilled or warmed on medium heat. Top with freshly ground black pepper and/or a drizzle of olive oil or a dollop of cashew cream if desired.

VEGAN KHAO SOI: CHIANG MAI CURRY NOODLES

This spicy, savoury, sweet, sour noodle soup will wake your taste buds up! I love having this healthy yet filling noodle soup in cold weather or when I'm under-the-weather-but-not-too-under-to-make-it. And.. it can easily be made gluten-free by using gluten-free noodles or not using noodles at all and adding extra vegetables like I do sometimes.

The fresh curry paste makes a big difference in flavour so do make it if you have time. If not, there's always next time! Adjust the salt, sugar, and lime to taste - the quantities given below are just guidelines. Customize the flavour to *your* taste buds! 

Vegan Khao Soi: Chiang Mai Curry Noodles

makes: 4 large or 6 small servings

- 1/2 cup khao soi curry paste (recipe below)

- 1 tbsp. coconut oil

- 2 cups coconut milk

- 2 carrots, cubed

- 1 handful green beans, cut into 1 in. pieces

- 1 cup sliced mushrooms

- 1 med. capsicum, cut into 1 in. pieces

- 2 cups tofu cubes

- 1 tbsp. soy sauce

- 2 tsp. sugar

- 4-5 cups water

- 1 lb. (~1/2 kg.) egg noodles (or gluten-free noodles)

Garnishes 

- bean sprouts (or fried noodles)

- sliced shallot (or onion)

- sliced hot chiles

- lime wedges

- cilantro

Curry paste (This makes 1 cup curry paste. Use half for this recipe and refrigerate the rest for up to 1 week.)

- 2 shallots, peeled and quartered

- 4 cloves garlic, peeled

- 2 Thai/Chinese/Vietnamese black cardamoms (elcha in Gujarati, badi elaichi in Hindi)

- 1 tbsp. coriander seeds

- 3 dried Thai bird chiles (or any spicy dried peppers), dry roasted

- 1 tsp. garam masala (or any curry powder)

- 1-2 in. piece of fresh turmeric

- 1/2 in. piece of ginger

- 4 stalks lemongrass, tender inner part roughly chopped (bottom ~four inches only)

- 1 bunch cilantro, stems cut and leafy tops and tender stems reserved

- 1 tbsp. lime zest

- 1 tsp. salt

1. In a skillet, dry-roast (roast without oil) the coriander and cardamom seeds. Dry-roast the dried chiles.
2. Add the roasted seeds and chiles to a blender jar. Add the remaining curry paste ingredients and blend into a smooth paste. You'll have to scrape the sides of the jar a few times to get a smooth paste.
3. In a heavy-bottomed pan, heat the coconut oil and add the 1/2 cup curry paste. Fry the curry paste on medium-low heat until it is fragrant and slightly dry, ~5 minutes. Add 1/2 cup of the coconut milk and stir to mix. Fry for ~5 more minutes until the mixture is somewhat dry. Add 1 cup of coconut milk and fry on medium-high until you see coconut oil on the surface (it will be red oil since it's mixed with the curry paste).
4. Add the carrots and green beans, turn the heat to medium if needed, and stir-fry for 5 minutes. Add the capsicum and mushrooms and stir-fry until the capsicum softens slightly.
5. Turn the heat to high. Add the remaining coconut milk and 4 cups of water and bring to a soft boil. Turn the heat to medium or medium-high and simmer until the vegetables are cooked. Add the tofu and simmer for a few more minutes. Turn the heat off.
6. Stir in the soy sauce, sugar, and extra salt if needed. The soup should taste ever-so-slightly over-salted since you will serve over unsalted noodles and with garnishes.
7. Cook the noodles according to directions on the package and divide among 4 bowls. Ladle the soup over the noodles and garnish as desired.
8. Serve with generous lime wedges and extra sliced green and crushed red chiles. Enjoy hot! Refrigerate leftovers for no more than 2 days.

IRAQI AUBERGINE AND LAMB STEW

My favourite cuisines other than Gujarati are - in no particular order - French, Arabic (from Levantine countries), Afghani, Persian, Mexican, Greek, Italian, and Japanese. I love cuisines that effortlessly combine ingredients to create deep complex flavours. Especially cuisines that have a variety of vegetarian foods, since I am mostly vegetarian and seldom cook meat at home.

This delicious sweet and tangy Iraqi lamb stew is not vegetarian, but it contains a small enough bit of meat to remain light on the body. It's also very versatile - this time I made it with lamb because I needed to use up some leftover ground lamb but I usually make it vegetarian. I find that the split yellow peas add enough meatiness to make a substantial stew - it makes a great meal with bread or rice and of course, a small crisp salad. 

Iraqi Aubergine and Lamb Stew
makes: 4 - 6 servings

- 1 large aubergine, cubed
- 2-1/2 tbsp. salt

- 4 tbsp. olive oil
- 1 med. zucchini, cubed
- 1 potato, cubed
- 2 carrots, cubed
- 1 bulb fennel, cubed

- 1/3 lb. ground lamb

- 1 large onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced

- 4 tbsp. pomegranate molasses

- 1/2 cup dried yellow split peas, soaked in cold water for 8 - 12 hours

- 4 dried red chillies

- 2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tbsp. chilli flakes or powder

- 2 tsp ground cumin

- 1 tsp ground coriander

- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

- 1/4 tsp ground cardamom

- 1/4 tsp ground cloves 
- 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1. In a colander, mix 2 tbsp. salt into the aubergine cubes. Let the aubergine sit for about 30 minutes until the bitter juices run out. Squeeze the cubes to remove any water that didn't drain out, and pat dry.
2. Preheat the oven to 375 F / 190 C. Mix the aubergine cubes with 2 tbsp. olive oil and bake for 15 - 20 min. or until tender.
3. While the aubergine is baking, heat the remaining 2 tbsp. of the olive oil in a large pan on medium heat. Add the dried chillies, onion, and garlic and sauté till the onion is translucent.
4. Add the lamb and cook for a few min. till the lamb is evenly browned, breaking up large chunks with a spoon. Add the split peas, all the vegetables (except the aubergine, which is still baking!) and the spices and stir to mix well. Turn the heat to high and add 2 cups water. Cook on high for 5 min. Reduce the heat to low, stir in the baked aubergine, pomegranate molasses, and remaining 1/2 tbsp. salt and cook till the vegetables are done, about 20 - 30 min., stirring occasionally.
5. Turn the heat off and adjust salt if needed. Serve with any Arabic bread or rice.

ZUCCHINI AND HERB SOUP

I really love the colour of this soup! And the very refreshing herbal flavours with the creamy  texture of blended zucchini make it perfect for spring and summer when you want a light energizing meal. Plus it's very easy to make. There's not much more to say, really.

I find greens and vegetables very satiating and filling, but sometimes when I just want a more substantial meal, this soup is superb with this incredible cucumber tomato cheese sandwich. It would also go very well with focaccia, Dutch onion and cheese bread, or any other kind of bread, a smoked salmon/trout sandwich, roasted potatoes, a pasta salad, casserole... anything other than fruits.

Zucchini and Herb Soup
Makes: 4-6 servings

- 1 lb. zucchini, cut into chunks
- 1 small yellow onion, sliced
- 3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
- 1-1/2 cups arugula (or baby spinach or watercress)
- 1/4 cup coarsely chopped parsley, including tender stalks
- 1/8 cup loosely packed whole fresh mint leaves (or cilantro)
- 1 in. piece of ginger (no need to peel if it's organic)
- 1 tbsp. coconut oil (cold-pressed, or use extra virgin olive oil)
- 1 tbsp. salt
- 1 tbsp. pepper
- 3 cups water, plus 2 cups for blending 
- 1 lemon, juiced - optional

1. In a large pot, heat the coconut oil on medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and ginger and sauté till the onion is translucent but not browned (lower the heat if necessary).
2. Add the zucchini and sauté for 2 minutes. Add the water and turn the heat to High until the water boils. Turn the heat down to medium and let everything cook until the zucchini is soft. Turn off the heat.
3. Add the pepper. Add the arugula and parsley, and push the leaves down to submerge into the cooked vegetable mixture. Let it all cool to luke warm or room temperature. Add the mint (or cilantro) leaves.
4. Blend the soup until very smooth, adding water as needed to get the consistency you want. It'll have to be blended in 2 or more batches depending on the size of your blender jar. Taste and adjust salt and pepper. If serving warm, transfer the soup back into the pot and heat until the soup is just barely simmering (don't boil it!). If serving cold, transfer the soup back into the pot or another container, chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours and serve as below.
5. Ladle into large bowls and serve with extra pepper, or a drizzle of lemon juice, or avocado, walnut, coconut, or olive oil.

BROCCOLI AND GREENS SOUP

An easy soup that's delicious warm or chilled... perfect for cold, rainy evenings or warm summer evenings. And, you can chop up the vegetables while the onions and garlic are sautéing, put them all into the pan, add water, cook still soft, season with salt and pepper, and blend! It's important to use fresh vegetables, not frozen, because really the soup gets all its flavour from the vegetables, herbs, and really good quality salt and pepper. 

Herbs: you can use parsley or cilantro if you don't have fennel greens.

Serve the soup with this herb focaccia, any other bread, roasted potatoes or sweet potatoes, or just by itself. If you want it spicy, add a dash of hot sauce, more black pepper, or red chile flakes.

Broccoli and Greens Soup
Makes: 6 main servings

- 1 medium onion, sliced
- 4 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
- 2 medium heads broccoli
- 1 small sweet potato
- 2 medium carrots
- 4 stalks celery, coarsely chopped
- 4 collard leaves, coarsely chopped or torn into pieces
- 3 cups spinach
- 1/2 cup fennel greens, parsley, or cilantro
- 4 cups water
- 2 tbsp. salt
- 2 tbsp. black pepper, freshly ground
- 1 tbsp. ghee, or butter (or olive oil, in a pinch, but that'll change the flavour)

1. Cut the broccoli, sweet potato, carrots, and celery into approximately 1 in. chunks.
2. On a medium flame, heat the ghee in a large pan and sauté onions and garlic.
3. Turn the heat to medium-high. Add the carrots, celery, sweet potato, collard greens, and broccoli and sauté for 2-3 min.
4. Add the 4 cups of water and turn the heat to high. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium and cook until the vegetables are just soft, not colourless and soggy.
5. Turn the heat off. Stir in the spinach, fennel greens, salt, and pepper.
6. Cool the cooked vegetables and blend into a smooth soup, adding more water if needed to get the consistency you like.Taste and adjust the salt and pepper.
7. Before serving, heat the soup on medium heat - don't boil!
8. Ladle into a bowl and serve garnished with minced parsley or shredded cheese and extra pepper. Enjoy!

HOW TO ROAST A WHOLE PUMPKIN, AND PUMPKIN SOUP

The pumpkin roasts itself, and the soup nearly makes itself! Can't get much easier - and more autumn - than this. You can roast, peel, and cut the pumpkin a day or two before and store it in the fridge to save on prep time.

Serve with grilled cheese or baked polenta with vegetables for an easy weeknight dinner.

Any winter squash - butternut, acorn, delicata, spaghetti squash - can be roasted like this. Smaller squashes will take less time so keep an eye on the oven, checking the squash periodically after the initial 30 minutes of cooking.

Roasted Pumpkin and Pumpkin Soup
Makes: 6 generous servings

- 1 6 lb sugar pumpkin or any other cooking pumpkin
- 32 oz. vegetable broth
- 1 medium yellow onion, cut into large chunks
- 3 cloves garlic, cut into a few large pieces
- 1 tbsp. coconut oil (or any other cooking fat of choice)
- 2 tsp. salt
- 1-1/2 tsp. curry powder
- 1 tsp. cumin powder
- 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp. sugar

Optional, for garnish:
- 6 tbsp. roasted pumpkin seeds
- Or any one of the following: cream, yogurt, pumpkin oil, shaved Parmigiano Reggiano cheese

Roasted Pumpkin:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 F / 190 C.
2. Remove any stickers from the pumpkin, wash, and put the whole pumpkin on a rimmed baking pan and into the oven.
3. Let it roast for 1 hour or until a knife can be easily inserted into the pumpkin. (If you're making pumpkin soup, now's the time to saute the onions and garlic - see recipe below).
4. Remove the pan from the oven, and make a couple of cuts in the pumpkin to let steam out.
5. After 20 minutes or so, cut the pumpkin in half and let the halves cool on the pan.
6. When it's cool enough to handle, use a spoon to remove the seeds and strings from the seed pocket. Make sure to remove all the stringy bits.
7. Cut each pumpkin half into 3 wedges and pull the skin off. The skin will be papery and separate already from roasting so it'll come right off without a knife.
8. Make pumpkin soup (recipe below).
9. Or, mash or blend the pulp and use within 2 days or freeze immediately up to a month.

Roasted Pumpkin Soup:

1. While the pumpkin is roasting, heat the coconut oil (or whatever cooking fat you're using) on medium heat and sautee the onion and garlic. Let it all cool.
2. Break the roasted pumpkin wedges (see step 7 above) into pieces and put in a blender.
3. Add the sautéed onions and garlic, salt, sugar, and all the spices.
4. Add 2 cups broth or enough to be able to blend everything into a thick purée until no stringy bits or chunks remain. Add the rest of the broth.
5. If it's too thick, add water (or milk/cream) to get a consistency you like.
6. Before taking it out of the blender, taste and adjust seasonings, blend it all one last time.
7. Transfer to a pan and reheat the soup to a simmer.
8. Ladle into bowls.
9. Garnish each bowl with a tbsp. of the roasted pumpkin seeds before serving.

CAULIFLOWER SOUP: THE ONLY RECIPE YOU'LL EVER NEED

Don't fix it if it isn't broken. And this recipe isn't broken. So let your inner gourmet goddess take the day off while you make this soup the way it's written below. Guys, yeah I assumed women are reading this, but even though you're not a woman, the same instructions apply.

I've adapted this from Paul Bertolli's recipe from Cooking by Hand. I say adapted because I usually add less water since I like my soup slightly thicker. Other than that, I don't change it. It's really important not to over-heat the olive oil, and not to let the onions brown at all. Browned onions are tasty but not right now.

I really think the first time you have this soup keep the garnishes light... a drizzle of olive oil and some freshly ground toasted pepper is really all you need. And perhaps when you're on your second bowl, add in a dash of nutmeg or truffle butter. Because cauliflower loves nutmeg and truffles... sparingly.

I simply love this soup just on its own. But if you want, serve this with a hunk of good bread or a parrano grilled cheese for a party in your mouth!

Cauliflower Soup
Makes: 4 main, 8 first course servings

- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 medium white or yellow onion, sliced thin
- 1 head white cauliflower (about 1-2 lbs), broken into florets
- 2 tsp good quality salt
- 4-1/2 cups water, heated

- 1 tsp extra virgin olive oil per serving, for 4 servings. For 8 servings, use 1/2 tsp per serving to garnish the soup before eating.
- Freshly ground regular or toasted black pepper, to taste
- Additional salt, to taste

1. Warm - not over-heat - the olive oil in a heavy-bottomed pan. If the oil starts smoking, it's burnt and you have to start over with a clean pan.
2. Sweat the onion in the olive oil over low heat without letting it brown. At medium low this will take around 15 minutes.
3. Add the cauliflower and 1/2 cup hot water.
4. Raise the heat slightly to medium, cover the pot tightly and cook the cauliflower for 15 minutes, or until tender.
5. Then add the other 3-1/2 cups hot water and salt. Bring to a low simmer and cook an additional 15 - 20 minutes uncovered. Make sure the cauliflower is really tender at this point.
6. In batches, blend the soup to a smooth, creamy consistency. Let the soup stand for 20 minutes to let it thicken slightly.
7. Before serving, thin the soup with 1/2 cup hot water if required.
8. Reheat the soup and serve hot, drizzled with the extra-virgin olive oil and freshly ground black pepper.

SPICY RAW SOUP: CAN'T HAVE ENOUGH OF THIS

Raw soup, smoothie, blended salad, whatever it is, it's delicious!! I drink at least one or two smoothies a day, usually for breakfast and dinner. I love creating seasonal flavour combinations, and this is one of my go-to, no-fail summer ones. Vary the ingredients and proportions to suit your needs, but be judicious with strong flavours such as salt, spice, garlic, or bitter greens. Try your own combos based on seasonal fruits and vegetables!

I won't endlessly extol the virtues of eating wholesome foods, but suffice to say that eating almost no commercially processed foods, less grains and mostly fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and their derivatives such as oils, is the way to live. After you have this or any other smoothie, notice the rush of energy you feel. Food is also related to mental well-being. Eating fresh, seasonal, life-giving foods will make you a more pleasant, balanced person, able to handle the stresses of work and other things with a cooler, more solid demeanour. And your taste buds will be more sensitive to flavours so you'll enjoy all foods much more.

Try it for a week: have a large smoothie for breakfast, and a large one for dinner. At these meals, if you're still hungry after the smoothie you can have a handful of nuts or as many fruits/vegetables as you want. With a vegetable smoothie like the one below, have vegetables if you're still hungry. With a fruit-based green smoothie, have fruit. Don't mix fruit and vegetables. And, you should have no grains, no dairy, no meat 2-3 hours before or after the smoothie.

And definitely don't put things like almond milk, milk, yogurt, kefir, etc. in your smoothie. Just water or coconut water.

Raw Summer Soup/Smoothie

Servings: makes 1 large soup/smoothie, enough as breakfast/dinner/snack

- 2 medium zuchhini

- 1 cup cherry tomatoes

- 1 avocado

- 2-3 cups greens of choice - spinach, arugula, lettuce (any other than Iceberg), kale, chard

- 1 handful of fresh basil leaves

- 1/4 - 1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper (the kind you put on pizza)

- 1 lemon, juiced

- 3/4 - 1 tsp. good quality salt

- 1 small clove garlic (optional)

1. Wash, cut and prep everything.

2. Add the heavy vegetables first - anything non-leafy.

3. Leafy things go at the top. In this case the avocado was an after-thought so it's on the top!

4. Add 1/2 - 3/4 cup of water and blend.

5. This will create a "creamy" base before you add more water. (Too much water from the very beginning will result in a non-smooth smoothie - a bit contradictory, really. And definitely not tasty.)

7. Add water, 3/4 cup at a time, until you have the consistency you want.

8. Pour into a glass if you're having it immediately. Otherwise pour into a container and refrigerate. 

CRANBERRY BEAN, ROASTED CORN, AND SWEET POTATO STEW

I always fall for good looks. Cranberry beans, or borlotti beans in Italian are probably the most beautiful of all beans, with gorgeous pink streaks all over their cream background. The flavour is quite creamy and subtle, and although they are related to kidney beans, they taste totally different. I would not recommend substituting kidney beans in this recipe.

Sorry for the blah photos, but I was really short on time when I was making this stew.

Cranberry Bean, Roasted Corn, and Sweet Potato Stew

makes: 4 servings

- 1 tbsp. coconut oil

- 1 small onion, diced

- 3 cloves garlic, minced

- 1 tsp. smoked paprika

- 1 tsp. ground cumin

- 1 tsp. dried oregano

- 1 tsp. crushed red pepper

- 3 plum (or 10 cherry) tomatoes, chopped or pureed in a food processor

- 2 cups (or 1 can) cooked cranberry beans

- 3 cups vegetable stock

- 2 cups sweet potato, peeled and chopped into 1-1/2 in. cubes

- 1-1/2 cups roasted corn kernels (fresh or frozen, like the ones from Trader Joe's)

- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped

- salt and crushed red pepper, to taste

1. In a stock pot over medium heat, sauté onions in coconut oil for a few minutes, until translucent.

2. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute or until fragrant.

3. Add sweet potato and stir, cook for 3-4 minutes.

4. Stir in smoked paprika, crushed red pepper, cumin, oregano, tomatoes, and beans, and cook for 5 minutes.

5. Add vegetable stock and 1 tsp. salt.

6. Bring to a boil, and then lower heat and simmer uncovered, for 15 minutes or until sweet potatoes are tender.

7. Add roasted corn and cilantro, and simmer for another 5-10 minutes.

8. Add salt and additional crushed red pepper to taste.
9. Garnish with fresh cilantro. 
10. Serve with bread, white or wild rice, quinoa, millet, or salad.

Notes:

1. Add diced carrots if you have them.
2. Since olive oil is unstable and oxidizes at high heat, I use coconut oil for sauteeing usually. Unless I'm making something where the coconut oil flavour won't match the ingredients.