Back to getting lucky as usual.

This looked fun. It had all sorts of things in it I'd never had before. After all of the substitutions I found myself having to make, I STILL haven't had those fun ingredients. Recipes are more like "guidelines" anyway. Amazingly, I didn't have to change the title.

"Squash, Chickpea, and Red Lentil Stew" (6 quart pot)

The original recipe is HERE.

~1 (14 oz) can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
~1 medium butternut squash, peeled and cut into chunks (I'd never heard of kambocha and guess what? I couldn't find it, either.)
~1 c baby carrots
~1 onion
~3/4 c red lentils (it's all we had left)
~4 c vegetable broth
~2 T tomato paste
~1 T minced peeled fresh ginger
~1 1/2 t ground cumin
~1 t salt
~1/4 t turmeric (The main spice was supposed to be saffron. Sadly, "the world's most expensive spice" was just too expensive for our blood and DinnerTool hasn't yet sent me my winnings. P.S. $20 for a spice is ridiculous.)
~1/4 t pepper
~1/8 c lime juice (it's all we had)
~1/2 c roasted unsalted peanuts
~1/4 c fresh cilantro leaves

Combine chickpeas, squash, carrots, onion, lentils, broth, tomato paste, ginger, cumin, salt, turmeric, and pepper in crock pot.
Cover and cook on low for 6 hours.
Stir in lime juice.
Top servings with peanuts and cilantro.

6 servings.

What did I change, exactly? Most of the main ingredients. Go look. Compare. I can wait.

Knowing turmeric and saffron are COMPLETELY different spices, I had no idea how this was going to turn out. Surprisingly, this was delicious even with all of the changes I made. Even my little helper LOVED it. It's super flavorful and definitely different from anything I've ever crocked before. I'm just THAT good. Or lucky. Yeah, that's gotta be it. Lucky.