Three Sisters’ Stew

Recipe of Heather Irby, HDIS Customer Care Department

Is there anything more comforting than a home filled with the aroma of simmering harvest vegetables and seasonings? Perhaps savoring a bowlful! Heather’s stew makes a spicy side dish or vegetarian meal of squash, corn, and beans. Native Americans called them the Three Sisters…

• 1 small (2 lb.) sugar pumpkin, or 1 large butternut or carnival squash
• 1 tbsp. olive oil

• 1 med. onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 med. green or red bell pepper, cut into short, narrow strips
• 14- to 16-oz. can diced tomatoes, with liquid
• 2 cups cooked or canned pinto beans
• 2 cups uncooked corn kernels (from 2 or 3 ears)
• 1 cup homemade or canned vegetable stock, or water
• 1 – 2 small, fresh hot chiles, seeded and minced, to taste
• 1 tsp. each: ground cumin, dried oregano
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 3 – 4 tbsp. minced fresh cilantro

Preheat oven to 400˚. Cut pumpkin or squash in half lengthwise and remove the seeds and fibers. Place the halves, cut side up, in a foil-lined baking pan. Cover with foil and bake for 40 to 50 min., or until easily pierced with a knife, yet still firm. When cool, scoop out and coarsely dice the pulp. Set aside.

Heat the oil in a soup pot. Add the onion and sauté until clear. Add garlic cloves and sauté again until the onion is golden. Add the diced pumpkin (or squash) and all other ingredients except salt, pepper, and cilantro. Cover and simmer gently until all vegetables are tender, about 20 to 25 min. Season with salt and pepper.

If time allows, let the stew stand for 1 to 2 hours before serving, then heat through. Just before serving, stir in the cilantro. The stew should be thick and moist. Serve in shallow bowls. 6 servings.