Page 23 - Caroline Wright Cookbook

PAGE 21

2 red bell peppers, seeds removed, roughly cut into pieces
1/2 ounce dried porcini mushrooms, chopped or broken into small pieces (about 1/2 cup)

4 garlic cloves, peeled
1 tablespoon caraway seeds, plus more for serving (optional)
1/4 cup paprika

1/4 cup nutritional yeast
Kosher salt
1/4 cup olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped
4 banana peppers (sometimes called “yellow wax pepper”) or Anaheim chiles, seeded and
chopped
2 pounds cremini mushrooms, trimmed and halved, or quartered if large
1 bay leaf, fresh or dried

1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 medium sweet potato, peeled, cut into 1 to 2-inch chunks
3 large carrots, peeled, sliced into 1 to 2-inch chunks

1 tablespoon cider vinegar, plus more to taste

1 In a blender jar, combine bell pepper, dried porcini, garlic, caraway, paprika, yeast,
1 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 cup water; blend until smooth. (You should have about 2
cups purée.) Place blender jar next to the stove.

2 Heat oil in a large, heavy pot over medium heat until hot; add onion and peppers to
pot. Season generously with salt (about 1 teaspoon). Cook, stirring often, until onion
has softened (about 10 minutes). Raise heat to medium-high. Add mushrooms;
season again with salt (1/2 teaspoon). Cook, stirring often, until mushrooms release
their liquid and mushrooms begin to brown (about 10 minutes). Stir in reserved
pepper purée, bay leaf, tomatoes, potato, carrots, and 6 cups (1 1/2 quarts) water;
season generously with salt (about 1 teaspoon). Cover pot and bring to a boil.

3 Lower heat to slowly simmer stew, uncovered and stirring occasionally, until
potatoes just begin to break down and broth reduces to a thick gravy (about 35
minutes). Stir in vinegar. Season stew with additional vinegar and salt to taste.
Remove bay leaf before serving and scatter servings with caraway seeds, if desired.

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