Ensnaring Your Mate With African Peanut Soup

At long last, you can finally check "make a soup with peanut butter in it" off your list of life goals.

You're welcome.

One of my favorite dishes to make (and eat, of course) is African Peanut Soup.  It's great because it's another one that you can assemble, throw in the crock pot and leave all day, then come home to a delicious smelling kitchen and a pre-made dinner.  Anything that you can consume immediately is something to get excited about.

But I'm getting ahead of myself.  The first time that I made this dish was in the early stages of my relationship with Habibi.  You might say it helped me win him over.  Well, probably not, but as I am only about five feet tall, I wasn't exactly capable of bludgeoning him over the head and carrying him off like our caveman ancestors would have.  No, in this day and age, you have to be much more subtle and conniving...so you make soup for people who catch your fancy.

Now stop distracting me and let me tell the damn story.

When Habibi and I were first dating, I was post-college and living with my parents.  (Shut up.  I had a job and I never lived in their basement.  Plus I don't like Mountain Dew and I hate video games.)  Anyway, my olds were out of town for the weekend, so Habibi came over to spend the afternoon....

After building the most kick-ass fort that ever graced our living room (the fort had cathedral ceilings!), we chowed down on soup and watched movies from the couch cushions on the floor.

It was so magical that the very next day, we exchanged "I love you's."  It's amazing what a little peanut butter and a few clothespins attached to living room furniture can do.

I love soup.  I love peanut butter.  I love Habibi.  This recipe combines two of those ingredients, and I get to share it with the third.  Not a bad combination.

African Peanut Soup

(Adapted from allrecipes.com, submission by PIETOGO)

Serves:  10 (or 8...)

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 medium onions, chopped
• 2 large red bell peppers, chopped (Frozen bell pepper strips also work well.)
• 4 cloves garlic, minced (The equivalent of minced garlic from a jar also works.)
• 1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes (or pureed diced/stewed tomatoes), with liquid
• 8 cups vegetable broth or stock
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
• 2/3 cup extra crunchy peanut butter
• 1/2 cup uncooked brown rice

Directions:

• Heat oil in a frying pan over medium high heat.  Cook onions and bell peppers until lightly browned and tender, stirring in garlic when almost done to prevent burning.
• Combine tomatoes, vegetable stock, pepper, chili powder and sauteed veggies/garlic/oil in a crock pot.  Cover and cook on low all day.
• Go away.
• Come home.
• Inhale deeply.  (MMMM!)
• Cook rice separately, according to package.
• Shortly before you are ready to eat, add peanut butter.  Stir until well blended.
• Either add the cooked rice to the soup, or pour the soup over rice in your bowl and serve.

This recipe freezes well, so make a big batch for future meals...

...or fort building nights.