Slow Cooker Sephardic White Bean Stew

It is almost slow cooker weather in Florida!  Granted, that means Highs below 85 degrees, but still, it makes me happy.  In an effort to use expand my slow cooker repertoire to a more healthy variety, I decided to turn to vegetarian cookbooks and happened upon Gil Marks' Olive Trees and Honey.   In it, was a recipe for Sephardic White Beans with Leeks.  While I was making it, it looked more like a side dish than the main dish, so I bulked it up with some zucchini and eggplant I had in the refrigerator.  It made the house smell fantastic and is great over rice for a hearty vegetarian meal. 

I didn't take any pictures of it while cooking, but I do have photos of the finished product.  I made this in between building a sukkah at my synagogue and celebrating a friend's new baby - not a whole lot of time left over for photography.  Speaking of which, if you are Jewish, Happy Sukkot!  I won't go into the details of the holiday here, so if you would like more information, here's a link. 

Sephardic White Bean Stew - Up Close and Personal

Carrot, Leek and Chickpea Soup

Some days just call for soup!  This was a clean out the fridge soup, and turned out so well I ate it all week.  

Remember this picture?

 I still have way too many carrots and am trying desperately to use them up!

Due to a camera malfunction, and by malfunction I mean I broke it, I am relying on my camera phone for blogging purposes.  Sadly, this is the only photo of the soup that survived the transfer. 

To make the soup, first chop two large leeks in half, and then in shreds.  Make sure to wash the leeks before you cook them, they do collect sand in between the layers.  Slice about 6 small cloves of garlic.  Peel and slice three large carrots into thin half moons.  Heat about three tablespoons of olive oil in a large soup pot.  Saute the leeks until they become softened and pliant.  Add the garlic and saute for one minute.  Add carrots and saute until they begin to soften and add about two quarts of chicken broth.  Bring the soup up to a simmer and add a bay leaf, a teaspoon of black peppercorns, a Parmesan cheese rind and 4 cups of chick peas.  If not using your own cooked chick peas, then add two cans of rinsed chick peas.  Simmer on low for about an hour.  If you would like to, add cooked pasta before serving.  If planning to cook the pasta in the soup, add more broth! 

Ingredients:
2 Large Leeks
6 garlic cloves
3 large carrots
2 quarts of chicken broth
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon black peppercorns
1 Parmesan cheese rind
4 cups cooked chick peas
2 cups cooked pasta

For a soup that eats like a meal, serve with cheesy garlic bread!