Happy Meatless Monday and thanks for stopping by and reading this week’s vegetarian offering in support of this great movement to “reduce meat consumption by 15% to improve personal health and the health of our planet”.

Our recipe today comes from Isa Chandra over at Post Punk Kitchen and is perfect for the colder weather plus you get your greens, beans and grains all in one pot. It’s so easy to make and versatile so feel free to use different beans or grains if you have them on hand. I made it using brown rice and it was great. Fennel seeds can be tricky though and not to everyone’s palate. I have made this recipe both with and without fennel and it was good either way. Just a note, I have found it best to crush the fennel seeds using a mortar and pestle (in case you were wondering).

Ingredients:
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 cups leeks, thinly sliced (white and green parts)
1 teaspoon salt
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 large carrot, peeled, diced medium
1 large parsnip, peeled, diced medium
8 cups vegetable broth
1 1/2 pounds yukon gold potatoes, diced medium
1 cup dry quinoa
1 15 oz can white beans, drained and rinsed
1 bunch kale (about a pound), rough stems removed, torn into bite sized pieces

Herb blend:
1/2 teaspoon fennel seed, crushed
1 teaspoon dried majoram
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary
Fresh black pepper, to taste

Preheat a 4 quart soup pot over medium high heat. Saute leeks and garlic in oil with salt for about 3 minutes, or however long it takes you to prep your carrot and parsnip. Add carrot and parsnip, along with the herb blend, turn heat up to high and saute for a few seconds.

Add vegetable broth, potatoes and quinoa. Cover and bring to a boil. Once boiling, turn heat to medium and cook for 15 minutes, until potatoes and quinoa are tender. Add kale and beans, and stir frequently until kale is wilted. Cover and simmer on low for 5 more minutes. Taste for salt

When you serve you may want to add a little lemon juice or a splash of balsamic vinegar or hot sauce – whatever your thing is. Or you may not.

This serves 8 and can be adjusted up or down if you prefer. I’d recommend making a big batch as it’s great the next day and froze well in an air-tight container for me.

If you want to learn more about the Meatless Monday movement, you can click here to visit their website. Enjoy and my thanks to Post Punk Kitchen for another great recipe!