Vegan Paella

Here's a vegan spin on paella, a traditional Spanish dish made of rice and seafood. Instead of seafood, this dish uses cashews as the protein.It's fun and easy to cook, and gives you one more excuse to open a bottle of wine. But remember: When cooking with wine--in this case, white wine-- use a decent wine. Trust me, your taste buds will thank you.

1 large Vidalia (or onion of your choice) onion, chopped
4 tbsp organic olive oil
12 oz organic brown rice
1 large carton organic vegetable stock
6 oz dry white wine
1 16 oz can organic chopped tomatoes
1 tbsp tomato puree
½ tsp dried tarragon
1 tsp dried basil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp oregano
1 red pepper, chopped
3 sticks celery, chopped
1 cup mushrooms, whatever is locally available, chopped
½ cup frozen peas
¼ cup broken cashew nuts
Sea salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. In a large, heavy saucepan fry the onion in 4 tbsp olive oil.

2. Add rice to the pot.

3. Add vegetable stock, wine(remember what I said about the wine!), tomatoes, tomato puree, tarragon, basil, garlic, and oregano to the pot.

4. Simmer for 10 to 15 minutes. Add peppers, celery, and mushrooms and cook for another 30 minutes until the rice is cooked.

5. Add peas, cashew nuts, salt, and pepper.

6. Heat through until peas are ready and serve.