This delicious, versatile and really easy stew takes only 10 minutes to prep and then it just cooks away in one pot on the hob. It makes a balanced bowl of food for all the family and uses cans of economical chickpeas and tinned tomatoes. The recipe is easily doubled if you want to do it as a batch cook and freeze portions for another day. Serve it on its own, with couscous, pasta, rice or flatbreads. Blend the sauce, either fully for weaning babies, or leaving some chunky for the rest of the family. This is a gentle introduction to spice for little ones (including babies) and perfect for warming you all up after an autumn walk.
Note: You can also use butternut squash or pumpkin in place of the sweet potatoes and carrots – you want the combined weight of the carrots and sweet potatoes (or other squash substitute) to be about 800g. Frozen butternut squash works fine as well.
Prep time: 10 mins
Cooking time: 30 mins
Makes: 4 servings
Ingredients
- 1 onion
- 2 sweet potatoes
- 2 carrots
- 1 stick of celery
- a drizzle of olive oil
- 1 garlic clove
- 1 can chickpeas, drained
- 1 tin chopped tomatoes
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- a pinch of nutmeg
- 250ml water or low-salt stock
- a few spoonfuls of Greek or natural yogurt (or plant-based alternative)
- a handful of fresh coriander
- couscous, pasta, rice or flatbreads to serve – as you like!
Method
1. Peel and chop the onion, sweet potatoes and carrots into smallish pieces and slice up the celery. Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a lidded casserole dish or pan and add all the veg, plus the crushed garlic. Soften for a few minutes. Give it a stir and add the chickpeas, tinned tomatoes and spices. Pour over the water or stock, stir again and cover with a lid. Cook over a medium heat for 20 minutes.
2. Blend the stew with a stick blender or in a food processor/baby food blender. You can make it smooth for babies or leave a bit chunky. It’s nice with some blended and some chunky for the rest of the family.
3. Serve topped with a dollop of yogurt and chopped coriander. It’s delicious eithr on its own or served with couscous, pasta, rice or flatbreads.
I love versatile meals and this one is so straightforward. You can vary what you offer it with or just reheat some on its own for when you’re after a light, veggie meal. I’ve got batches of this in my freezer and it’s just so easy to reach for and defrost on days when me and the kids need something warm and simple. It’s also really easy to make from scratch on days when you have the time – and just so tasty.
If you’re after more quick meal options for mid week, check out my book ‘How to Feed Your Family’ as well as these Easy Fishcakes and my Easy Cheesy Potato Pie. I have lots more ideas on my website too, so make sure you check out the Recipe section for more.
How To Feed Your Family
The idea started a while back and I’ve been prepping recipes, writing text, testing the tips and advice for around a year and it feels SO good to finally be able to share it with everyone
This recipe has been created by Emily from Nutritious Family Food – do check out more of her recipes on her Instagram.