Easy Vegan Meal - Lentil Vegetable Stew

I'm an okay cook, but I definitely prefer the eating more than the preparing and tend to avoid following recipes. I've come to accept that I come from a long line of ancestors whose favorite things to make were dinner reservations. So, I look for shorcuts where I can.

I was really in the mood for stew yesterday, but didn't feel like making something from scratch. I had a can of Amy's Lentil Vegetable Soup (and I can't tell you how cool it is to see products with "(VEGAN)" heading the ingredients list) in my pantry, to use as a starting point.

These processed foods tend to have too much salt, so the first thing I do is add about a half can of water to start and then play it by ear, depending on how it tastes, to determine if I'll add more water later. Then I throw in whatever frozen veggies I have on hand - yesterday it was your basic mixed vegetables and cut leaf spinach - and maybe a frozen animal-product substitute, like the vegan Morningstar Steak Strips I used in this dish. (I just dump the frozen items right into the pot - they cook just fine.)

After bringing the soup to a simmer/low boil, I decided it could take some more water, and that I would then thicken it up with a corn starch roux (whisking the starch with some of the hot soup broth until it's a paste, and then adding it back to the pot). Then I added some garlic powder and a little Kosher salt, once in the bowl, to taste. And of course, I had to have some ketchup with my stew, as is my personal tradition.

It was delicious, hearty and satisfying, and SOOOO quick and easy! And by adding the water, veggies and strips, I turned a 2-serving, $2, fairly high-sodium can of soup into a healthier, 4-serving, multi-meal stew.

Today, I plan to have the rest with some leftover Basmati rice. Just the antecdote for a cold, rainy, winter day when you need a little comfort food.