Vegan Recipes - Entrees

Spicy Stew in a Pumpkin Shell

This delicious stew makes a wonderful Thanksgiving dish. Baked in a pumpkin shell it is a beautiful seasonal addition to the table.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch dice
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 lb. tomatillos, husked and quartered (you can used canned tomatillos reducing cooking time accordingly. Green tomatoes can be used instead of tomatillos but the taste will not be the same.)
2 cups cooked hominy (grits) or 1 15-oz can hominy, rinsed and drained?
1/4 tsp salt
1 3-to 4-lb pumpkin (or several small pumpkins for individual servings), either sugar pie, cheese, red kuri, kabocha, or buttercup squash

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Heat 1 Tbs. oil in pot over medium heat. Add onion, bell pepper, and garlic. Saute 7 minutes, or until softened. Stir in chili powder, cumin, and oregano, and cook 3 minutes more, or until spices darken. Add tomatillos, hominy, 1/2 cup water, and salt. Cover, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer, partially covered, 10 to 12 minutes, or until tomatillos are softened. Uncover, and cook 5 minutes more to thicken stew, if necessary. Meanwhile, cut top of pumpkin around stem to make lid. Scoop out pumpkin seeds and strings. Rub inside of pumpkin with remaining 1 Tbs. oil, and sprinkle generously with salt. Fill pumpkin with stew, then top with pumpkin lid. Place on parchment covered baking sheet and bake 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until pumpkin flesh is fork-tender. Remove from oven; let stand 5 minutes. Scoop stew, includng pumpkin, into bowls and serve hot. If using small individual pumpkins, the stew can be eaten directly from the pumpkin shell bowl.

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