Mexican Vegetable Stew

__________________________________________________

              FOOD FUNNY
__________________________________________________

Here's one I hadn't heard before from Rosemary Zwick:

I was waiting tables in a noisy lobster restaurant in Maine when a
vacationing Southerner stumped me with a drink order. I approached the
bartender. "Have you ever heard of a drink called 'Seven Young
Blondes'?" I asked. He admitted he'd never heard of it, and grabbed a
drink guidebook to look it up. Unable to find the recipe, he then asked
me to go back and tell the patron that he'd be happy to make the drink
if he could list the ingredients for him. "Sir," I asked the customer,
"can you tell me what's in that drink?"

He looked at me like I was crazy. "It's wine," he said, pronouncing his
words carefully, "Sauvignon blanc."

__________________________________________________

             TODAY'S RECIPE
__________________________________________________

This colorful vegetable stew can be served as a side dish or as a
meatless entree. To make it truly vegetarian simply substitute the broth
with vegetable broth or water.

Mexican Vegetable Stew (Guisado de Verduras)

2 onions, peeled and sliced
1 sweet red pepper, cut into strips
1 sweet green pepper, cut into strips
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups (375 ml) beef or chicken broth
1 tsp (5 ml) ground cumin
1 tsp (5 ml) dried oregano
1/2 tsp (2 ml) fennel seeds
1/4 tsp (1 ml) red pepper flakes (or to taste)
2 small red potatoes, diced
1 small sweet potato, diced
2 cups (500 ml) fresh green beans, sliced into 1-inch (2.5 cm) pieces
1 zucchini (courgette), sliced
1 yellow squash, sliced
1 15-ounce (425 g) can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 ears corn cut into 1-inch (2.5 cm) pieces, or 1 cup (250 ml) corn kernels
2 Tbs (30 ml) lime juice
1/2 cup (125 ml) cilantro or flat leaf parsley

Combine the onion, red and green peppers, garlic and broth and bring to
a boil in a large pot. Cover and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the spices,
red potatoes and sweet potato, cover and simmer 10 minutes more, adding
more broth or water if needed. Add the green beans, cook 5 minutes more.
Add the zucchini, yellow squash, black beans, corn and lime juice.
Reduce the heat and simmer 5 minutes, or until all the vegetables are
tender. Garnish with cilantro or parsley.
Serves 10 to 12 as a side dish, 4 to 6 as an entree.
Received on Tue Mar 31 18:05:19 2009