Vegan Pozole Verde

This is part of a sponsored collaboration with JCPenney and DiMe Media. However, all opinions expressed are my own.

With all of the excitement and anticipation that precedes Christmas, I admittedly feel a bit wistful come New Year’s Day. I’ve been known to keep the Christmas tree up until the first week of the New Year, in part as a way of celebrating Three King’s Day.

In Puerto Rico, Three King’s Day is highly venerated and deemed one of the most important holidays celebrated. Tradition holds that children who have been “good” throughout the year will receive a gift under their bed once they have placed grass in a box for the camels of the Three Wise Men along with a small snack or gift. Celebrations include music and food with a heavy emphasis on the religious aspect of this holiday.

Food is an integral part of our celebrations, and in honor of Three King’s Day, I whipped up a savory Vegan Pozole Verde. Pozole (Posole) is a celebratory dish which originated in Mexico. With hominy as its base, this soup can be made with or without meat and is often seasoned and garnished with chile peppers, salsa, and limes. There are actually 3 variations of pozole (posole), red, green, and white, and variations are typically regional.

This pozole verde features white beans, white corn hominy, onion, garlic, tomatillos, cilantro and oregano and is then garnished with fresh avocado, scallions, cilantro, pepitas, and lime.

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Vegan Pozole Verde

Ingredients

• 1 cup dry white beans
• 1 cup dry white hominy corn
• 2 tsp . olive oil
• 1/2 onion diced
• 2 cloves of garlic minced
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 4 tomatillos
• 1 handful of cilantro
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp oregano

For the Garnish

• Avocado
• Cilantro
• Scallions
• Pepitas
• Lime

Instructions

1. Soak beans and hominy corn overnight
2. Rinse and drain beans and hominy before cooking
3. In a food processor, process tomatillos and cilantro until smooth
4. Sauté onions and garlic in olive oil in a large saucepan until soft (do not brown)
5. Add vegetable broth, tomatillo mixture, salt, pepper, and oregano and simmer approximately 1 hour
6. Serve with fresh avocado, cilantro, scallions, pepitas and a squeeze of lime

This soup can be made in a slow cooker, which would allow the flavors to meld slowly. If you are pressed on time, you can quick soak the dried beans and hominy by boiling each separately for 2 minutes, then allowing to soak for an hour. Drain your beans and hominy and use them in your soup.

This soup is warm, savory and absolutely delicious. To showcase it’s beautiful heartiness, I decided to serve it in the Harmony Pfaltzgraff bowls I picked up while shopping at my local JCPenney. Much like Christmas, our Three King’s Day meal is special and I like to create a festive winter tablescape for the occasion. I used JCPenney Home’s Florence Damask Tablecloth as a backdrop for our meal. I also picked up a new flatware set for a casual, but elegant compliment to our dinnerware set.

It had been some time since I last visited the home section of my local JCPenney store, and I was quite impressed with the quality and selection of items I found. From prepping and cooking your meal, to serving and displaying your Three King’s Day dishes, JCPenney is your go-to this Three King’s Day. And, if you still need to pick up a gift, you’ll find an incredible selection of ideas for the whole family including toys for kids, apparel and shoes for teens and tweens, electronics for they man in your life, and jewelry for you, and home decor items to create an inviting space.

For more Three King’s Day tips and gift ideas, follow JCPenney on Facebook.