A cold Winter’s day and a hearty dish are a perfect combination – and hearty doesn’t have to mean unhealthy or high calorie. For me it’s something that warms me from the inside out and packs some healthy protein. It’s gotta be steaming hot and spicy!

This warming, hearty recipe kind of just happened by accident in my kitchen. One very busy day on which I had more blue hubbard squash (a type of winter squash) than I could handle and no time to mess around with dinner, I went rummaging through my pantry and found some quinoa and curry. I put a little of this and a little of that into the crock pot, popped the lid on, turned the dial to medium, and 10 minutes later was headed out the door. All there was left to do was hope that dinner wouldn’t be a flop! Much to my surprise, my family loved it, and so did I! I’ve made it a couple of times since and have perfected the balance of flavors, and now I bring you my super quick, easy, tasty, hearty, and healthy crock pot curry!

Crock Pot Quinoa Curry

Serves: 4                 Serving Size: about 2 cups

Prep Time: 10 minutes                         Cook Time: 6 hours in crock pot

Ingredients

• 4 C winter squash, cubed*
• 1 Spanish onion, diced
• 1 28 oz can San Marzano tomatoes, drained and roughly chopped
• 1 C red quinoa, rinsed and drained
• 2 C vegetable broth
• 2 Tbsp red Thai curry powder**
• 1 tsp garlic
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 C canned coconut milk
• 4 Tbsp unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1 lemon, cut into wedges

*I used blue hubbard squash, but if you don’t have any, butternut or acorn squash will work just as well!

**I got my curry powder from a local spice shop, but most major grocery stores carry red curry powder.

Directions

1. Cube your squash, dice your onions, chop your tomatoes, rinse your quinoa, measure out your spices, and throw it all into a crock pot.

2. Add your vegetable broth, give everything a stir, put a lid on your crock pot and set it to medium heat. At this point you can forget about it for 6 hours. Perhaps go to work, run some errands, or stare at the wall (I don’t recommend this).

3. After 6 hours, turn the crock pot heat down to “keep warm” and stir in 1 C of coconut milk. At this point dinner is ready to be served. Let it be noted, never, ever put coconut milk into a crock pot until your are ready to serve. I’ve seen and tried many recipes on Pinterest that recommend adding the coconut milk at the beginning of the recipe. Unless you have fake coconut milk, it will separate, curdle, and become just plain nasty if it reaches too high of a heat! Don’t curdle your coconut milk!

4. To serve, dish into a favorite bowl, spritz with a wedge of fresh lemon, and sprinkle with 1 Tbsp of unsweetened shredded coconut.

Crock Pot Quinoa Curry

Yield: 4

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 6 hours

Total Time: 6 hours 10 minutes

Crock Pot Quinoa Curry is a quick and easy, hearty and healthy meal that will warm you from the inside out.

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Ingredients

• 4 C winter squash, cubed (blue hubbard, acorn, or butternut)
• 1 Spanish onion, diced
• 1 28 oz can San Marzano tomatoes, drained and roughly chopped
• 1 C red quinoa, rinsed and drained
• 2 C vegetable broth
• 2 Tbsp red Thai curry powder
• 1 tsp garlic
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 C canned coconut milk
• 4 Tbsp unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1 lemon, cut into wedges

Instructions

1. Cube your squash, dice your onions, chop your tomatoes, rinse your quinoa, measure out your spices, and throw it all into a crock pot.
2. Add your vegetable broth, give everything a stir, put a lid on your crock pot and set it to medium heat. At this point you can forget about it for 6 hours. Perhaps go to work, run some errands, or stare at the wall (I don't recommend this).
3. After 6 hours, turn the crock pot heat down to "keep warm" and stir in 1 C of coconut milk. At this point dinner is ready to be served. Let it be noted, you should NEVER put coconut milk into a crock pot until your are ready to serve. I've seen and tried many recipes on Pinterest that recommend adding the coconut milk at the beginning of the recipe. Unless you have fake coconut milk, it will separate, curdle, and become just plain nasty if it reaches too high of a heat! Don't curdle your coconut milk!
4. To serve, dish into a favorite bowl, spritz with a wedge of fresh lemon, and sprinkle with 1 Tbsp of unsweetened shredded coconut.