Hearty Vegetarian Crockpot Stew... Or, What to Do With Languishing Share Leftovers

I came home from five days in California and found myself confronted by chilly, windy weather and two weeks' worth of leftover share vegetables on their way to rotting in my crisper drawer. So I made a hearty vegetarian stew. Take that, turnips.

Note #1: If you've never tried seitan before, you can find it in most organic/hippie food stores. It's only $4 or $5 for an 8 oz package.  It is made of wheat-gluten and is a great meat substitute as it has a hearty taste and texture and tons of protein.

Note #2: You can also add any number of other vegetables, such as greens, squash or tomatoes. This is just what I had on hand.

Ingredients:

 - 1 package chicken-style seitan, shredded

 - 1 onion, diced

 - 3 cloves garlic, minced

 - 6 cups vegetable broth (I used mushroom flavored "better than boullion")

 - 3 potatoes, cubed

 - 1/4 head cabbage, shredded

 - 2 ears corn, diced

 - 3 carrots, sliced

 - 3 turnips, cubed

 -  3 stalks celery, sliced

 - Seasoning: salt, pepper, dried mustard, oregano & paprika, to taste

 - 1/4 cup soy sauce

 - 4 TB cornstarch blended with 4 TB cold water

What You Do:

- Warm olive oil in a pan. Cook seitan for a few minutes until brown.

- Combine all ingredients in a crockpot. Cook on low 6-8 hours or on high 3-4 hours. 

 - You can add more cornstarch or flour if you want a thicker stew; just blend it first in a separate container with equal parts cold water before adding to the stew. Also, the stew will get thicker as it cools.

 - Serve with shredded parmesan cheese on top and thick, crusty bread.  Enjoy!