After my ambitious triple-blog-post week just after Arlo was born, I lost the motivation to write. I even had a few recipes and photos uploaded to my drafts folder, but I just couldn’t write the actual posts.
Knowing how fast this time goes by, I yearned to simply be present. I slowed down, which felt absolutely amazing. I worked when the inspiration was there and didn’t when it wasn’t. I soaked up our sweet baby boy. I savoured the confidence and ease of being a second-time mom (what a difference). A rollercoaster of hormones hit me early on, and I struggled with the blues on and off. I nursed and pumped and nursed some more. Eric and I mumbled incoherent words, back and forth, in the middle of the night (why is it so impossible to string words together at 3am?). I kissed Arlo’s head, cheeks, and feet a million and one times, and it has yet to feel like enough. I don’t think it ever will.
We witnessed Adriana transform into a little girl right before our very eyes. One night as I rocked her at bedtime—with her long legs falling off the side of the rocker, my arms burning under the weight of her body, and her bossy words instructing me what songs to sing and not to sing (“NO thank you, MOMMY!”)—it struck me that I was not cradling a baby anymore. I fought back tears. It had been a while since I rocked her, as my 3rd trimester bump had gotten in the way. Now she was basically a teenager disguised as a two-year-old.
Our basement renovation is almost wrapped up, so we’ve taken up dancing, the four of us, in the unfurnished rooms while listening to Christmas music. Adriana clutches her baby doll in her arms, just like I do with Arlo. We also play hide and seek. Often, the basement fun abruptly ends in tears as Adriana has a penchant for running into walls. Ouch. Boo-boos are kissed, and we explain, once again, why it’s a bit too soon for her to pick up her baby brother. So she hovers about an inch over his face, just trembling with excitement, sneaking in kisses. “He’s looking at you!” she yells with delight as he stares into her eyes.
I never want to forget these moments.
Even though I haven’t been writing as much, I’ve been cooking every chance that I get. A couple months ago, Pulse Canada contacted me about partnering with them to develop and share a recipe in celebration of the International Year of Pulses. If you can believe it, I’ve never created a sponsored recipe; most offers I’ve received didn’t feel like authentic reflections of me and the Oh She Glows brand. But pulses…well, I didn’t have to think twice. Peas, beans, lentils, and chickpeas? You know I’m down with that. As I’ve shared on the blog before, Canada is one of the world’s leading producers of pulses (in fact, we’re the #1 producer of peas and lentils, which I think is super cool). There are a whopping 22,000 pulse farmers in Canada (high fives), and our pulses are consumed in over 150 countries. (“Our pulses”? Okay, now I’m talking like I grew them myself or something!) On a personal level, I eat pulses every single day, and I adore their flavour and versatility. Red Lentil Hummus, Chickpea Pancakes, No Bake Chickpea Cookie Dough Bars (a recipe I never got around to finalizing!), Lentil-Walnut Taco “meat”…the sky’s the limit with what you can create!
Aside from being super nutritious and easy on the wallet, pulses are friendly to the environment, too. Their carbon footprint is lower than almost any other food group.
Pulse Canada has created the “Pulse Pledge” encouraging people to commit to eating pulses once a week for 10 weeks and reduce their carbon footprint all at the same time. It’s totally free, and you can sign up with me here. (Spoiler alert: I’m killing it, lol.)
A big thanks to Pulse Canada for sponsoring this post. I’m delighted to finally share my newest pulse-based stew recipe with you below!
A couple housekeeping notes:
Be sure to check out my Instagram post on Friday for some super exciting Black Friday news (hint hint: big app sale, a free holiday cookie app bundle, and Android news!).
Lastly, I’m thrilled to let you know that Oh She Glows Every Day has made it to the final round in the Goodreads Choice Awards. Thank you so much to everyone who has voted and helped to get the book this far! Voting for the final round is open through November 27th; if you’re game to cast one more virtual ballot (or maybe your first!), I would appreciate the support more than I can say. :)
Butternut squash, red lentils, and sweet potato are wrapped in a lightly sweet and creamy coconut and tomato broth accented with spicy notes of turmeric, cumin, chili powder, cayenne, and garlic. Apple cider vinegar provides a tangy brightness to bring everything together. This stew tastes better the next day once the flavours have had a chance to mingle; if you can make it the day before serving, I’d highly recommend it! This recipe was created for Pulse Canada, and was inspired by Deliciously Ella. * Make sure to dice the squash and potato very small (about the size of almonds), as this will expedite cooking. Also, if you are short on time, you can skip peeling the butternut squash as the skin is edible. (I don’t recommend skipping peeling the potato, though.) ** You can swap the red lentils for 1 (14-ounce/398 mL) can chickpeas (drained and rinsed). *** You can swap the chard for 5 ounces of baby spinach or a bunch of kale (stemmed). I recommend chopping the greens into small bite-size pieces for easier eating.
Cozy Butternut, Sweet Potato, and Red Lentil Stew
Yield
11 cups (2.75 quarts)Prep time
Cook time
Total time
Ingredients
For the stew:
Optional accompaniments:
Directions
Tip:
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)
How many people does this serve?
Hey Trish, It makes 11 cups so I’d say it’ll serve 4 comfortably. :)
Delicious. Will make again.
Thanks Marianne! So happy it was a hit.
Delicious! I used carrots instead of sweet potatoes and spinach for the greens. Angela, I have both of your cookbooks and have never made a recipe we didn’t like. Thanks!
Hi Karen, Glad it was a hit! I love using carrots in this stew too. Thanks for your kind words about my recipes, by the way, so happy you enjoy them so much.
I just made this for a vegan side for Thanksgiving tomorrow (we have vegans among our meat eaters in our family) and it is delicious. I’m trying not to eat it all tonight! I’m going to add the greens tomorrow before serving it, but it is really amazing. Great job!
Hey Catharine, Oh the hardest part about make-ahead recipes is not eating them all before! So happy you love this one. Thanks for the feedback!
Oh my GOD this is amazing!! I didn’t have apple cider vinegar, so I used red wine vinegar instead, but HOLY it’s so good! I swear the vinegar is the secret ingredient that adds that extra ‘oomph’ of flavour!
Even my boyfriend, who LOVES meat, ate two bowls of this.
Makes a HUGE amount, also, so I brought some to work for lunches and shared — and everyone at work wanted the recipe too! Thank you for this, will definitely add to my winter staples!
Hey Allison, Whohoo…so thrilled to hear you all enjoyed it so much! Thanks so much for your feedback.
I just made this tonight and cannot get over how good it is! Thank you for the wonderful recope. Now that I’ve tried it, I can’t wait to make it for guests – always looking for recipes to share that showcase how delicious vegan/plant based diets can be.
Hey Masha, So happy you love it so much! Thank you for trying it out. :) I hope it’s a hit with your guests too.
Thank you so much for this!!! tried it 3 times so far and hands down one of the best homemade stews ever made. Officially my go-to staple stew at home!
Aww I’m so happy you love it so much Rebecca…I’m so honoured. :)
This is really a great recipe! It was a super smart move to add the apple cider vinegar. The acidity gives it such a bright flavor, which is needed because of all the heavy elements.
There is one thing though that I do to elevate it just a bit more. While the flavor is excellent, the texture is very mushy. And while you have a plethora of great ingredients in here, they get lost in the mush. Holding on to the chard stems, chopping them, and throwing them in along with the leaves gives the stew a little crunch and breaks up the monotony of the soft potatoes and squash.
Hey Nathan, Oh that’s a fantastic idea to add a bit of crunch. I’ll have to try that next time. Thanks for sharing! And I’m so glad you enjoy the stew. :)
This recipe is truly awesome. It has risen above my two other make-all-the-time lentil recipes. I can hardly believe that such a few simple spices create this much flavor. I double the garlic & heat spices and use dino kale since it’s easier to come by. I always use full fat coconut milk–who doesn’t love extra creaminess in everything?! I add a pound of grass-fed ground beef to this (sorry, but it adds another level of flavor and richness that is incredible) and double the lentils so there’s more to enjoy for longer!
Hey Sarah, So happy to hear you love this one so much! Good call on using the full-fat coconut milk! So rich and satisfying.
I did a little experiment with this recipe by throwing all of these ingredients in a slow cooker for four hours because my little angel of a screaming toddler was not about to let mama chop, saute, and boil!
Mistake! Apparently the acidity from the tomato and apple cider vinegar, along with the generous amount of salt I added kept the lentils from absorbing any liquid. Aaarg! Going to try and let it go overnight, crossing my fingers that all is yummy and mushy in the am. I also read that under-cooked lentils can be quite hazardous! Who knew… thought I would share my chemistry lesson here in hopes in helps someone else. Doh!
Looking forward to trying this recipe AS WRITTEN next time!
Hey Tiffany! I hope it worked itself out overnight too! Just checking: did you use red lentils? They cook a lot faster than regular brown or green.
I made this today, it was amazing. Usually the only thing I have had from this site has been the holiday soup for the soul and that was great so I had high hopes.
I did edit the recipe a bit with extra butternut squash, no sweet potato and double the lentils but it was pretty much the same thing. Blending some of the veg at the end really works well, and it was tempting to just have that as an amazing soup. I had never used cider vinegar before this so bought some today, star of the show!
Had it with Cauliflower rice and it was sublime, thanks!
Hey Paul, I’m so happy to hear both the recipes you’ve tried so far have been hits. Thanks so much for your feedback on this recipe! It’s always so nice when you can customize a recipe with what you have on hand. Happy cooking!
This looks a great recipe and cannot wait to try it. I’m just wondering how many people it will feed? Need to feed 4 hungry adults and a 1 year old. Thanks.
Hi Helen, The yield is 11 cups (2.75 quarts)…hope this helps!
Yummm! Made this tonight!!! Added white beans along with spinach and squeezed lemon juice on it at the end. I can not wait to eat leftovers tomorrow!!!!
This is an awesome recipe! Made it tonight minus sweet potatoes. I didn’t realize that I bought pre-cut potatoes and they were past their consume by date:(
Do you think this recipe would freeze well?
Hey Kristen, Oh that’s such a bummer when food expires. I’m so glad the stew was still a hit! Yes it does freeze well :)
Thank you! This is a new favorite. Super easy and so tasty.
just made this tonight—with plenty of leftovers. thank goodness for that! i live on my own and can see this stew being gone before wednesday.
at least i have plenty of ingredients remaining to make another batch!!!!!
haha Maggie, I can feel your excitement for this stew…thank you!! I hate sharing stew and soup too. lol. It just goes too fast. The leftovers get better and better too.
I accidentally doubled the cumin, turmeric and chili powder. I thought the spoon I was using was a 1/2 tsp., but it was actually 1 tsp. Oops!! As it turns out, it was a great mistake to make!! My 12 year old steppy who “doesn’t like squash” LOVED it! Thanks for sharing this recipe, I look forward to perusing more of your posts!!
Hey Amy, I’m glad it was a happy mistake! I often increase the spices called for because I really love spice. I love to take my 10-spice mix and shake it on top of my own bowl of soup/stew because I’ve found it’s good on just about everything. ;)
Fantastic recipe and I’m curious to know if it can be made in an Instant Pot. As a recent Instant Pot convert, I’m looking to try as many recipes as I can in it. This one looks like it would be a winner. I know you gave directions for the slow cooker and I’d like to use the pressure cooker function. Thanks in advance for any directions and thanks for so many of your other excellent recipes as well.
Hey Judith, I haven’t used an Instant Pot before so I’m not sure, but maybe another reader can weigh in?
I actually made this tonight in the Instant Pot! I used to the saute function to soften the veggies and left it on saute as I put in all the other ingredients. Then I set the pressure cooker button for 10 minutes. I didn’t add the apple cider vinegar and chard until it was done cooking. Worked well and was delicious!!
Thanks for sharing your tip about the Instant Pot!! Love it.
Honestly this is such a delicious, warm, hearty stew great for those cold winter nights! In love!
Thank you for trying it! Happy you enjoyed it so much :)
I have a toddler who is fussy when it comes to trying new meals. Also, I am trying to cook more plant based meals for us, so I thought I would give this a try. I only added half the amount of spices like you suggested to keep it mild. He ate a whole bowl of it! We both loved it and I will be making it again! Thanks for the recipe :)
Aww I’m so happy to hear this Monika! It always feels like such a victory when a toddler inhales a dish (I can relate to your struggles!!)
Angela,
Great receipe, you have really nailed this one. But then again, I have tried many of your receipes from your books, and they are very tasty. Nice job. I cut down the liquid to two cups in order to make a slightly thicker stew and it works great. Thanks!
Gary
Hey Gary, Thanks so much for your review..I’m so happy you’ve enjoyed so many recipes. And thank you for all your support with my books…means a lot to me!
Hi Angela,
Really looking forward to trying this recipe later today! Do you happen to know the nutrition facts for the recipe?
Thank you :)
Just remembering back, years ago, when I first started sharing your name – when friends would ask for the best resources to explore this healthy way of eating/cooking. I wanted to take a moment and let you know I think you are amazing at what you do and grateful that you share! I made this stew when I was fasting Tuesday for my husband and was so anxious to try it. Had it tonite and it just could not have been tastier!! YOU ROCK ANGELA :)
Hey Suzi, Well if this isn’t a way to start my Monday morning I don’t know what is!!! I can’t thank you enough for your amazing support..it truly means the world to me. :)
Question to the author. Is this your original recipe? What cuisine can we include this dish for? I managed to do it. delicious
Hey there, The recipes I share are original recipes unless otherwise indicated. So in this recipe, I’ve mentioned that it was inspired by a recipe from Deliciously Ella. Hope this helps!
I made this tonight, and it’s the most delicious and flavorful dish I have tasted in a while! Cannot wait to have my boyfriend try it tomorrow. It has so much flavor, I cannot get over it, or even pin point what is making it taste so bomb!! I actually only had 2 out of 3 cups of veggie broth left at home, that worked out fine. I also used frozen squash. I did have to add around 1 cup of water near the middle-end of the simmering at medium because it was needing it (obviously my fault), but it came out perfect at the end. Grams wise, I did use a smaller sweet potato, smaller by about 100 grams than the called for amount, and the squash amount I used was 560 grams, slightly more than the called for amount. I skipped the chili powder and only added a pinch of cayenne. This was such a beautiful, sweet, creamy, and satisfying dish. I think I found another staple meal! Thank you Angela :)
Hey Rachel, Thank you so much for sharing your recipe tweaks! That’s awesome you love it so much. Thank you for trying it out!
I like everything I’ve ever mad from the OSG books and APP but this blew my mind!!!! It was so flavourful, filling and satisfying. Will be making this often!! Thanks for always giving us the most tasty recipes – oh ya and it’s husband approved (by a non-veg/vegan)!
Hey Lisa, Oh I’m so happy you loved it! I made it this weekend too and I had forgotten how much I love it. I already bought more squash for my next batch.
Hi there, this sounds absolutely delicious.
I have to try and adapt a week’s worth of meals to a lady who is allergic to the deadly nightshade family.. so no tomatoes. Have you ever tried making this without the tomatoes?
Hey Georgie, I’m sorry I haven’t made it without the canned tomatoes, but I’m planning on making it again tonight so I will try to remember to try it! I’ll add the tomatoes near the end and compare the two.
Me again :)
I’m testing it right now and just wanted to update you! I tasted the stew half way through cooking without the canned tomatoes and the tomato paste and it’s quite good! I do think you can get away without using them, however since there’s no acid from the tomatoes I think it’s especially important to use the apple cider vinegar at the end of cooking, and you may even want to use a bit more (adding to taste). I’d love to hear how it goes if you try it out!
brilliant.. I will try it out and let you know . thanks so much for getting back to me .
No problem! Happy to help
I’m new to plant based eating and am trying this recipe for the second time – no tomatoes first time except 1 measly Roma tomato! It was so good. I’m following the recipe exactly and my kitchen smells wonderful. I especially like the “dice small, about the size of almonds”; I use this all the time! Love your app, insta-stories and website – it’s making this lifestyle/eating change easier. Thanks Angela!
Aww Colleen, I can’t thank you enough for your encouragement and support! :) And Im so glad this stew worked for you without tomatoes…I tried it this week and was pleasantly surprised myself.
I’m so happy I stumbled upon this recipe! I made it for dinner last night, and it’s definitely a keeper! It’s so flavorful and filled with healthy ingredients. I sautéed the veggies in water and reduced the recipe by 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Everyone loved it! I just had a sweet potato with this stew over the top for lunch. I’m so happy there are leftovers!
Hey Renee! Cozy must’ve been in the air last night as my mom made it for us too…one of my faves! Thanks for trying it :) I love that you served it over a sweet potato!
Hi Angela,
I am about to make this, really looking forward to trying it. yum
And great that Colleen has also tried it without tomatoes..
little question on quantities.
i need to make it for 13 plus people. the recipe is for 11 cups. I am not very good at quarts.. being english I am a little unused to this measurement.. Any tips greatly received.
Thanks a lot
Hey Georgie, Thank you! 11 cups is equal to roughly 2.6 litres or 2.75 quarts…does that help at all? :)
I think you’d probably want to double the recipe if you are making it for 13 people. I think this recipe would serve 6 (at just under 2 cups/500 mL per person). Doubling soups can be a bit tricky as sometimes you don’t need to double the liquid fully, and sometimes you need less salt too, so my advice would be to add the liquid and salt slowly as it cooks, to taste.
Thank you for the deliciousness! I made this and it was so good! I love your cookbook and stumbled across this recipe online. The spice combination is awesome and I added a bell pepper as well. Served with rice and warm naan perfect supper.
Hey Annie, Woohoo so glad this was a hit! I make it almost weekly lately! This cold weather just doesn’t want to leave.
OMG, instant new favorite! As I was making this it kind of reminded me of the Glowing Spiced Lentil Soup (another favorite), so I threw in some cinnamon and cardamom almost by habit. It was so freaking delicious that I literally dreamed about it last night and this morning my husband and I fought over who gets to have the leftovers for lunch (I won, moahahah).
haha that’s hilarious and sounds like me and Eric. So happy it was a hit! It’s one of my all time faves :)
Angela, Thanks for the recipe. Discovered a cozy butternut)
Fabulous recipe! Truly delicious. Thanks Angela.
Angela, Delicious! I wonder, but a lot of calories?
How would you modify this for a slow cooker?
Hey Jessica, I would saute the onion/garlic/spices in a saute pan first, and then add it along with all the ingredient (except for the greens) and cook on low for about 8 hours. I would add the greens during the last 30 minutes probably. I haven’t tried this before but I can’t see why it wouldn’t work. I hope this helps!
this recipe gets better and better every time i make it – which is quite often in the fall. just so yummy and so healthy. thank you angela for giving us such tasty and healthy recipes. <3
Aww thank you Ann! I’d have to agree with you…whenever I make it I always say that I forgot it tasted this good! haha.
Thanks for another great recipe, Angela! We have been eating more plant-based meals over the past year and your blog has become a go-to site for me :) It’s better than sifting through Pinterest! I omitted the tomato paste, chard, and ACV because I didn’t have the first two and forgot the last one, but it was great nonetheless! Wonderful for a rainy, cool fall day.
Hey Kelly, I’m so glad you’ve been enjoying my recipes! Thank you for the kind words. :) And that’s great news that the stew stilled turned out without those ingredients…I love when a recipe is versatile like that.
I made this on our camping trip– previously measured everything out, so all I had to do was add to the pot and let it cook over the campfire. I doubled the red lentils, and did not blend, so it ended up being a thick(er) stew. I also did not serve with rice or toppings. It was the perfect meal while we all sat around the campfire :) THANK YOU!
I LOVE THIS!!! How cozy does this campfire stew sound? So perfect…thanks for sharing Jessica!
Tried the recipe. Delicious! I added less cumin and no cayenne pepper, so it is on the sweeter side. But to be honest – it is perfect for cold autumn nights at home. Thank you! Will make again! Where do I find your cookbooks ?
Hey Elena, I’m so happy you loved the lentil stew! Isn’t it so cozy this time of year? Most chain bookstores should carry my cookbooks, or you can find them on Amazon using the following links…. This is my first cookbook: https://ohsheglo.ws/c And this is my second one, if you’re curious: https://ohsheglo.ws/v Thank you so much for your support! :)
Taste awesome, my husband and I loved it I used black rice instead of white rice because of the higher protein content in the black rice. Thanks so much for sharing your yummy recipes..?
Hey Tina, That’s great news you loved the stew so much! Good idea on changing it up with some black rice…yum!
I just made this for my family and they loved it. I made it in my Instant Pot (6min Manual then 10 min natural release) to shorten the cook time. So delish! I will definitely make this again. Thank you!
Thanks for sharing you IP method! I can’t wait to make it in mine.
Love this stew! But skip the salt, it doesn’t need it and it will be better for you. Thank you for the wonderful recipe. I have the Oh She Glows cookbook and I highly recommend that as well.
Thank you so much for your support LeAnn!
Thanks so so much for this very comforting stew. Made it tonight and we all LOVED it! I used kale in place of the chard and didn’t add the sweet potato as I didn’t have one just more lentils and squash and all still turned out divine!
Thanks for your review Nicole! I’m so happy you all loved it :)
Wow, this was fantastic. I’m relatively new to cooking and a slow chopper, so it took me about an hour and a half to make this stew. Despite the time commitment, it was well worth it. My eyes almost popped out of my head when I first tried it. The flavors blend together beautifully; the texture is divine. I will definitely be making this again for my family. Maybe next time, I’ll buy a bag of pre-cut squash instead.
well Im so glad you stuck with it and it was well worth the effort! :) So happy to hear how much you love it.
This stew is delicious. I even received a positive “it’s not awful” comment from my picky child. (That’s a win in my family!) I’ll be adding this recipe to the fall/winter dinner rotation.
haha oh I can relate to those comments ;) So glad it was a hit!
This is a great hearty recipe. Totally cozy and perfect for a (holiday) meal that you want to eat over the course of a few days. I doubled the recipe, added more greens to the pot at the end, and served basmati rice on the side. Delish! I think next time I make it I’ll add more green veggies and see how it turns out.
Hey Alison, Thank you! I usually double the recipe too. Just can’t get enough of those leftovers! Thanks for your review :)
I love this stew! I have made this recipe about a half dozen times and a two of the times my lentils lost their skin and turned the stew a dark brown color. The flavor was still great but the color was very unappealing. Any ideas as to why this could have happened and tips to avoid this from happening in the future? thank you!
Hey Melissa, Hmm it sounds like you may be using green or brown lentils instead of red lentils? Generally red lentils don’t have lose skins (they more so just break down when cooked). I’m so glad you love the stew regardless! It’s a fave over here.
There is something wrong with your website. This page says there are should be 409 “comments” for this post over 7 pages, but I can only see the comments on page 1. When I click to see pages 2,3,4,5, and 6, I can see the number of comments that should be on the page, but none are actually shown. I found that this is not just an issue with this recipe… I had the same problem with your Red Lentil recipe. Please help.
Hey Kathleen, Oh no! Thanks so much for letting me know! I just checked and it’s happening for me too. We’re going to look into this and hopefully the fix will be easy. Thanks for your patience in the meantime :)
I loved this stew! So hearty and flavorful! I added a can of cannellini beans for protein. Perfect for these chilly winter nights :)
So happy to hear that Nicole! Thanks :)