This past several days have been unbelievably hot in San Diego. Every year winter comes and goes and I forget the feeling of sweat-soaked clothing on my skin. Not terribly comfortable for the woman who regularly wears black polyester pants (we’re getting close to laundry day here).

However! I’ve had the veggies for this recipe almost a week now. They were on the verge of going bad. So we sat in our sweltering apartment and ate hot stew. Oddly enough, it made us feel cooler! I have heard that when you eat hot food, it heats your body temperature and there’s not such a huge difference between you and the air. Hmmmm…

Regardless, I would have eaten this stew even if it made me sweat like a Scotsman at a charity fundraiser. In other words: it’s delicious. Chunky and thick and SO tasty.

I’m trying to teach myself a few recipes to prep on Sunday nights and crockpot cook it on Monday while I’m at work. It makes our late track riding clinic much easier to handle if dinner is ready when we get home. You could do it in a pot though. Just try it, however you decide to cook it.

Moroccan Stew (prep time: 20 min, cook time: 4-6 hours, serves 4)

Ingredients

• 2 large onions
• 2 red peppers
• 6 carrots
• 4 cloves garlic
• 2 large handfuls kale
• 56oz (2 cans) diced tomatoes with juice
• 4 cups veggie broth
• 2 cups cooked chickpeas
• 4 tsp cumin
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp salt

Instructions

1. Chop all veggies into 1″ cubes/pieces. Mince garlic.
2. Mix all ingredients in a crockpot or very large soup pot.
3. Cook on high (crockpot) or medium-low (stovetop) for 6 hours.
4. Enjoy!

Get ready!! The weekend is coming. I could not be more excited about it. Hug and a big smile -Ash