Adapted from MeatlessMonday.com. Winter warmer stew. Downloaded from the web on Feb. 26, 2011.

My comment: I did make a major substitution in this dish — could it be Seitan? Because I wasn’t near Whole Foods and couldn’t obtain Seitan, I used tempeh — not one of my favorite things, but it seemed like it might be a reasonable substitute. For Weight watchers fans, I used roughly half as much tempeh as seitan — which made the point swap work out. Also did not bother with the beans and used crushed tomatoes. Still created a tasty stew.

Ingredients:

2 TBSP olive oil
1 pound Seitan, cut into chunks
1 large onion, sliced
4 medium carrots, sliced
4 medium potatoes, cubed
4 cups veg broth or use water (should cover the vegetables)
1 15-oz. can beans (black or kidney)
1 15-oz. can diced tomatoes
2 TBSP low sodium tamari or soy sauce
2 tsp brown miso
1 TBSP flour (optional thickener)

Method:

1. Saute seitan and onion in olive oil until the onions are translucent. Add carrots and potatoes and saute for a few minutes longer. Add the broth or water to cover the vegetables.

2. Puree beans and diced tomatoes together in a blender until smooth (here’s where I substituted just crushed tomatoes). Add this mix to the stew. Cook until carrots and potatoes are tender.

3. Add tamari and brown miso. If you wish to have a thicker stew, blend in flour and water together and add to the stew.  Also, add more vegetables as you wish.

Serves 6. Weight watcher Points = 6