Emptying the Fridge: Slow Cooker Style

Week one down!

Blogging everyday has caused me to have a lot of left over items in my fridge. More than a lot, actually. I decided to attempt getting rid of them by throwing as much as I could into my slow cooker and crossing my fingers.

To give it a Vegan MoFo twist, I decided to attempt a mole-esque sauce to go with it.

I don't slow cook very often in the summer. To me, slow cooking is for fall and winter. When you are busy and tired all the time and just need something to be ready for dinner when you get home. If you are like this, get a slow cooker. There is nothing greater than just throwing things into a pot, going to work and having dinner ready when you come home.

Here is what I made:

Sweet Potato Cocoa Stew

• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 1 Tbsp oil
• 1 red pepper, diced
• 1 Anaheim pepper, diced (I ended up only using half)
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp coriander
• 1 Tbsp paprika
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 2 sweet potatoes, peeled and diced about 2" cubes
• 2-3 red potatoes, peeled and diced
• 1 can of diced tomatoes
• 2 vegan sausages, chopped
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 2 Tbsp cocoa powder
• salt and pepper

So, a lot of ingredients, but easy to make. First get out a big frying pan and heat with the oil on medium. Next, toss in the onions and cook for 5 minutes. Add the garlic and the peppers and cook for another 3-4 minutes. Add in the spices (not the cocoa though!) and cook for a few more minutes until everything is softened up.

Slow Cooker Step one: Brown aromatics (onions, peppers, garlic etc)

Put this and all remaining ingredients into your slow cooker. Stir it and set on low for 6-8 hours.

Step two: Dump everything in the slow cooker.
Step three: turn it on and go about your day.

That's it! I love slow cooking. I decided to step it up a notch and cook up some collards to go with my stew. It was a perfect addition. All I did was chop up some collards and add them to a hot pan with a Tsp of oil. Let it cook for 5 minutes them add some balsamic vinegar and cook a few more minutes.

and serve.. I love when I can get dinner on the table within 15 minutes of landing at home!

I have to be honest. Normally when I attempt to just randomly dump left overs together into a dish, I screw it up. This stew tastes very classic. The cocoa gives it a little something, something that works so well with the sweet potatoes. If you don't have all the ingredients at home, don't worry about it. Just work with what you have. I am so glad it tastes good, because I made enough to feed a small army! Laura... if you're reading this, I will be bringing some by for you guys to try :)