Butternut Squash Birria

Birria is a mexican stew made with a base of dried, spicy peppers. Every house has a different recipe, using different dried chiles from ancho to pasilla to chile de arbol. Birria is almost always made with goat or beef which clearly will not fly on this blog! Here I take hearty butternut squash and chewy soy curls to create an even more flavorful and substantial stew. Serve your birria with warm corn tortillas for soping up all that broth you worked so hard on.

Fire roasted ancho and guajillo chiles, fresh anaheim chiles, butternut squash and soy curls in a dark, rich broth simmered low and slow until perfect and tender.

Butternut Squash Birria
2 dried ancho chiles
2 dried guajillo chiles
2 tbl extra virgin olive oil
1/2 medium sized red onion, minced
2 anaheim peppers, small dice
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups medium dice butternut squash
2 cups dried soy curls
1 tbl salt
1 tbl dried Mexican oregano
1 tsp dried thyme
3 tbl red wine vinegar
1 bay leaf
1-15oz can pinto beans, drained
1-15oz can diced tomatoes
4 cups vegetable broth
1 lime, cut into wedges
3 tbl roughly chopped cilantro
vegan sour cream

Under a broiler or over an open flame, toast the chiles. Soak them in boiling hot water for 20 minutes until tender. Reserve 1 cup of soaking water and drain the rest. Discard the stems and seeds. Blend the chiles and cup of soaking water until smooth. Set aside.
Saute the onion and anaheim peppers in olive oil over medium-high heat for 5 minutes. Add the garlic and butternut squash and cook to toast the garlic. Add the soy curls, salt, oregano and thyme. Saute for 10 minutes to brown the soy curls and soften the butternut squash.
Deglaze the bottom of the pan with vinegar. Add the bay leaf, pinto beans, tomatoes, broth and chile puree. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce the heat to a low simmer and cook for 20 minutes. Remove the lid and cook 20 minutes more until the squash is completely tender. Taste and season with salt.
Garnish with lime, cilantro and sour cream.

Red Lentil Stew

Hearty and filling with red lentils, zucchini, onions, fire roasted tomatoes and spicy green chiles, this stew will warm you up on the coldest of nights.

Red Lentil Stew
2 tbl extra virgin olive oil
1 yellow onion, small dice
1 celery stalk, small dice
1 zucchini, small dice
2 oz can roasted green chiles
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbl cumin
2 tsp chili powder
2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
3 cups vegetable broth
1 cup dry red lentils
1 cup water
1-15oz can roasted diced tomatoes
2 tsp green tabasco
2 limes, halved
3 tbl chopped cilantro
1 avocado, medium dice

Saute the onion and celery in a large pot until tender, 5 minutes. Add the zucchini, chiles, garlic, cumin, chili powder, salt and pepper and saute 5 minutes more. Add the broth, lentils, water, diced tomatoes, tabasco and juice from two limes. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cover. Cook for 20 minutes or until the lentils are tender but not mushy and falling apart.
Taste and adjust seasonings, garnish with cilantro and avocado.