Dish # 1: Black Soybean and Kabocha Squash Stew

Yes, I know...what is kabocha? And no, I haven't tried the dish yet but I'm very close. After roaming the earth, or so it feels, I now have all (well almost all) of the ingredients to make my first dish in Alicia Silverstone's The Kind Diet.

The first vegan meal that I'll make is a dish I thought would suit everyone in the family, including my eleven-month-old daughter. It's the Black Soybean and Kobocha Squash Stew and it took me a fair share of the day tracking down the various ingredients.

Before I list them, I just want to pay tribute to the internet because if it hadn't been for Wikipedia I would not have known what a kabocha looks like or what kombu seaweed is. Anyway, here's my shopping list:

• Dried black soybeans (I bought some at the local supermarket the other day. The brand is called Olay. Never heard of it but I trust the supermarket to carry good-quality brands in its "health section".)
• Kombu seaweed (I found a really expensive brand in a newly-opened organic supermarket down the road. The food store is called Cajsa Warg and the kombu is produced by TerraSana, a Dutch company that sells organically grown products).
• Kabocha squash (I didn't find the kabocha squash but I did find the butternut squash and Alicia said that it was ok to use this squash too).
• Mirin (I bought Japanese Mirin from Yutaka, a Japanese brand).
• White miso (I bought some miso soup from the same brand. Not sure if Miso Soup is the same as White Miso but I'll give it a go).
• Vegetables: Garlic, red onion, celery and cilantro sprigs, which I didn't find today but I'm sure the dish will taste good without it...
• Spices: Chili, red pepper, cumin and sea salt.

Voila! Looking forward to making it tomorrow. Until then, live green!