Green Swamp SoupKid, Earth and Time Friendly Recipes

When I was a kid, one of my absolute favorite dinners was this: Bohemian-style dumplings drenched in brown butter, sausage patties, sauer kraut and hominy fried in bacon grease! These menu items were all lovingly made by my German-Bohemian-Irish grandma, Bette, whom I adored. Whenever I eat hominy, I think of her. And my mom still makes those awesomely buttery dumplings. I eat hominy now sans bacon, of course. This recipe is a nutritious alternative to the hominy-in-bacon-grease dish, but still has that same old down-homey-ness.

Ingredients
28-oz. can hominy
2 tsp. olive oil
1 small onion
1 small red pepper, diced
2 cloves garlic
2 carrots, sliced
14-oz. can garbanzo beans
2 cups fresh spinach, chopped
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, diced
1/3 cup quinoa
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. chili powder (optional)
7 cups vegetable broth (or 7 cups of water and five tbsp. Bragg’s Liquid Aminos)
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Saute onion in olive oil for about five minutes on medium heat, till they are clear. Add garlic and saute until fragrant, about two minutes.
2. Add red peppers and carrots and continue to saute until they soften. You may need to add broth or Bragg’s to keep the veggies from over-browning and sticking to your pan.
3. Add spices, hominy and garbanzo beans and saute for two more minutes.
4. Add broth or water.
5. Bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer. Add quinoa.
6. Simmer for 10 minutes or until quinoa opens up.
7. Add spinach and cilantro to your pot and serve after spinach has wilted.
8. Serve with more cilantro and salt and pepper. Or, go crazy and add a big dollop of sour cream or guac and lots of tortilla chips.