Healthy eating is easy when you use a slow cooker. This vegetarian stew is loaded with nutrient-rich vegetables and flavored with mild curry powder. Light, but filling, it can be eaten alone, or you can serve it over brown rice or quinoa.

Yield: 6 servings

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 4 hours

Ingredients

• 2 large potatoes, chopped (about 3 cups)
• 3 cups broccoli florets
• 1 cup sliced carrots
• ½ cup chopped onion
• 2 (14.5 oz.) cans no salt added diced tomatoes
• ½ cup unsalted vegetable stock
• 1 tbsp curry powder
• ½ tsp ground cumin
• ½ tsp fine ground sea salt
• ¼ tsp ground black pepper
• 1 (15 oz.) can low sodium garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
• ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro

Directions

1. Place the potatoes, broccoli, carrots, and onion in the bowl of a 5 to 6-quart slow cooker. Add 1 can of the diced tomatoes with the juices.
2. Transfer the other can of diced tomatoes to a small food processor and puree on high for 15 to 20 seconds until a sauce has formed. Pour the tomato sauce over the vegetables. Add the stock.
3. Sprinkle in the curry powder, cumin, salt, and pepper. Stir to mix all ingredients. Cover and cook on high for 3 hours and 45 minutes, until the vegetables are tender.
4. Stir in the garbanzo beans and let cook for 15 more minutes to warm them. Serve sprinkled with fresh cilantro.

Lori Rice, M.S., is a nutritional scientist and author with a passion for healthy cooking, exercise physiology, and food photography.