Italian Curried Cauliflower and Chickpea Stew

In a large sauce pot, heat the oil over medium high heat. When the oil is hot (it will ripple) add the onion and sauté until the onions are soft and translucent, about 5-7 minutes.

When the onions are done, add the cauliflower. Season with salt and pepper. Stir to coat the cauliflower in the oil and onions, then add the curry powder and mix well.

Add the garlic and let it sauté for about 30 seconds, making sure you don’t let it burn.

Turn the heat to high and add the white wine. Let it boil for about a minute to cook the alcohol out. Add the tomatoes and drop the heat to medium (your ceiling will thank you).

Add the water into the can that the tomatoes came in, swish it around to clean out any tomato that may be left in the can and add the water from the can to the pot. Add the stock.

Season liberally with salt and pepper and mix well. Add the chickpeas and mix well. Let the sauce come up to a boil and then drop the heat to low.

Cover the pot with a tight-fitting lid and let the stew simmer until the cauliflower is fork tender, at least 30 minutes or up to an hour.

When the cauliflower is cooked and the stew is ready to be served; taste and adjust seasoning if needed. Serve and top the stew with the basil.

Notes:

1. A little heat would work great here so if desired add ½ teaspoon of chili flakes to the pot when you add the olive oil (add it to the cold oil to infuse it as the oil heats up).
2. To make this completely vegetarian, use vegetable stock.
3. I served this with basmati rice but do realize that rice is not figure friendly so keep portion control in mind.
4. This is a great autumn dish.
5. You can also bake this in the oven if you prefer. If you do this, put it into an oven at 350 F after you’ve added the chickpeas and bake for 30 or up to 60 minutes.