I plan our meals each week so that we avoid the temptation to dine out. Sometimes, though, we have extra bounty from our garden or CSA for which I haven’t planned.
This easy stew is one of my favorite ways to use a variety of stray vegetables so they won’t go to waste. I got the original recipe years ago from a friend, and we’ve added our own variations over time.
Summer Veggie Stew
Ingredients:
1/2 lb ground turkey
2 bell peppers, diced
1 onion, diced (If we don’t have fresh onions or peppers, I’ll throw in some frozen ones)
1 zucchini, diced
24 oz tomato puree
assorted other veggies (carrots, tomatoes, corn, green beans, etc)
seasonings (garlic, chili powder, cumin, salt, and pepper)
In a skillet, brown the ground turkey in one tablespoon of olive oil. In a large pot, sauté the peppers, onions, and zucchini until tender. If adding other fresh vegetables, such as carrots or green beans, cook them at the same time.
Once vegetables are tender enough to be pierced with a fork, add the tomato puree. Then add the ground turkey to the vegetable mixture. Throw in any additional frozen veggies, then season to taste.
We also fix this stew in the winter, but then the majority of our ingredients are frozen rather than fresh.
This recipe is relatively low calorie and quite filling. For an extra kick, add some red pepper. My son refuses to eat it that way, but my husband loves it. Both kids will eat the milder version of the soup if I bribe them with pita chips.
Do you have any easy summer recipes to share?
