Slow Cooked Vegetarian Black Bean and Sweet Potato Stew

My boss recommended this recipe to me after trying it. She had been reading a book about Blue Zones, areas where people live considerably longer, the book interviews centenarians from all over the world and highlights their healthy habits.

Recipe from "The Blue Zones Solution: Eating and Living Like the World's Healthiest People" by Dan Buettner.

Ingredients: 
 -1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes, preferably fire-roasted tomatoes
-3 cups rinsed canned black beans
-2 cups vegetable broth
-2 medium sweet potatoes (about 1 ¼ pounds total weight), peeled and cut into cubes
-1 cup drained and rinsed canned red kidney beans
-1 medium white onion, chopped

-2 medium red potatoes (about 12 ounces total weight), cut into cubes
-2 tablespoons minced garlic
-2 teaspoons chili powder
-1 teaspoon ground cumin
-½ teaspoon salt
-1 cored and diced red bell pepper, for garnish
-Finely chopped scallions, for garnish

Stir the tomatoes, black beans, broth, sweet potatoes, kidney beans, onion, red potatoes, garlic, chili powder, cumin, and salt in a 5- to 6-quart slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 4 hours or on low for 8 hours.

Ladle into bowls and garnish with bell pepper and scallions

  

I cheated a little and served mine with sour cream and cheddar, but overall this stew turned out really nicely. It had excellent flavor and plenty of ingredients making each bite interesting. Dave enjoyed his stew plain, but with a little bit of toasted bread to sop up some of the broth.