A veggie dinner with local (mostly) ingredients

We are getting a few beautiful multi-colored peppers—some rainbow bells, some tequilas, some apple pimentos—from the garden.  I can still pull some onions and I pulled all the garlic last weekend.  And, I found one shoot of Red Malabar Spinach that had reseeded and was growing in the garden path.  (Thankfully, this is all I have seen.  I thought I was going to have this spinach growing everywhere this year because I had let it go to seed.)

While we were with family in Colorado last weekend, the nieces gave us three yellow squash from their tiny but immaculate garden.   And, I was dying to try that great chutney I had sampled at the Louisville Farmers Market.  (Click here for our farmers market adventure and more about this chutney.)

So, with all this in my head and the hubby working late, I decided to whip up a veggie dinner.

Colorful peppers, just-pulled onions, a rogue Malabar spinach, and a Colorado squash.

When I was talking with the creators of Thing with Zing at the farmers market, they suggested that their product was great with sauted veggies.  Sounded like a plan to me.

1.  I started by sauteing the onions and garlic and peppers until they are just soft.

2.  Then I added some chopped squash and salt and pepper. 

3.  I stirred this all around a bit and then sauted it for about 3 minutes.  Then I stirred again, set to low, put a lid on it, and let it sort of steam.

4.  I left the lid on for about 7 minutes.  Then I stirred in 2 tablespoons of the fantastic chutney, Thing with Zing.   I tore up the spinach and at this point I thought basil would be great in the dish as well.  So, out to the herb garden I went!

What I ended up with was a fragrant, colorful, and delicious dish for supper.

I had initially wanted to serve this over rice, but the only rice I had in the pantry was a savory mix from our local gourmet shop.  Since it was well seasoned in its own right, I decided to serve it on the side.

Dinner is served!

I loved it.  How beautiful would this be served over arborio rice?  (It is on my list for the grocery store.)

But, when my husband finally made it home from work, he reminded me he did not like squash.  Really?  I will try to write this down so I can actually create it again because I loved it.

Veggies with Zing

1 medium onion, halved and then sliced thin
1 large clove garlic, minced
2 peppers, chopped (You could use one red bell and one green or an assortment of sweet peppers.)
1 yellow squash (Although, I think this would be equally good with zucchini.)
sea salt and fresh ground pepper
2 T. tomato-onion chutney (like Thing with Zing)
1 cup baby spinach (I used Red Malabar Spinach).
1/8 c. basil, torn

Saute onions, garlic, and peppers until soft.  Add squash and season with salt and pepper.  Stir and saute for a few minutes.  Turn to low and place lid on saute pan.  Let cook for 5-10 minutes until squash is soft.

Remove lid and stir in chutney.  Add spinach and basil and stir.

Serve as a side or over rice for a meal.

Serves 4.