Although Autumn in the Netherlands means no more then heavier rains and colder temperatures, and only the darker days indicate that the season has changed, I  still love the coming of autumn and the effect it has on my palate; as well as the affect it has on the offerings of my local grocers and markets. I've got real a thing for the orange and yellow foods, at the moment. I want sweet potatoes, pumpkins and squashes. Baked, roasted, stewed, or fried, sweet or savory, it doesn't matter. I came across this recipe for geurige stoofpot van pompoen en kikkerewrten, otherwise known as curried pumpkin and chickpea stew, in the Dutch edition of Delicious magazine. I love chickpeas and as pumpkin is currently on my cravings list, this recipe was a winner, as far as I was concerned. It doesn't take much effort, nor does it utilize a wealth of ingredients (thus you can avoid that trip outside in the pouring rain for an ingredient you might not normally keep on hand) and within an hour you have a big pot of fragrant and warming stew.  I like to serve  this dish over rice, although the recipe didn't stipulate doing so, and on Friday night when I served it over a mix of red rice and brown Basmati rice. E informed me during dinner that my stew-rice combo was great comfort food, and If my vegetable ambivalent, meat and potato loving boyfriend can say that about a vegetarian curry served over whole-grain rice, then it really must be good.

Curried Pumpkin and Chickpea Stew

source: Delicious magazine (Dutch edition), October 2007

2 -14oz cans coconut milk

¼ cup (60ml) soy sauce

1 cup (250 ml) chicken or vegetable bouillon 

¼ cup (60ml) vegetable oil

1 large onion, finely chopped

3 large cloves garlic, minced

1 two-inch piece of ginger, peeled and finely chopped

2 tsp Thai red curry paste

1 tsp ground coriander

1 tsp ground cumin

1,2kg pumpkin, peeled, seeded and chopped into 3cm chunks

800g chickpeas, rinsed and drained

15g coriander (cilantro), chopped

Combine the coconut milk, soy sauce and bouillon in a large measuring cup.

Heat the vegetable oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add the onion, garlic and ginger to the pan, sprinkle with some sea salt to prevent browning and saute for about 4 minutes until softened. Stir the curry paste into the pan and saute for 1 minute more, then add the coriander and cumin. Increase the heat to high, add the pumpkin and saute for 1 minute, stirring until all the pumpkin is coated with the onion-curry paste mixture.

Pour the contents of the measuring cup into the pan and stir. Gently bring to a boil, cover partially with a lid. Simmer over a low heat for 15-20 minutes, until the pumpkin is just begins to soften. Add chickpeas and replace the lid, covering the pan partially and let simmer for another 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and if you'd like to increase the heat, with more curry paste.

Stir in half of the coriander (cilantro) and serve in soup bowl, sprinkling the reserved coriander (cilantro) over the individual bowls. --- Serves 6-8

Chef's Notes:  I used freshly cooked chickpeas this time and I thought it greatly improved the taste of the final dish (go figure), and will definitely do so in the future. E and I both agreed, that some crunch amongst the softness of the pumpkin and chickpeas; a sprinkling of roughly chopped toasted cashews, impart the desired crunch perfectly and work well with the Eastern flavors of the stew.