Sweet vegetable and coconut curry

I have been craving mellow comfort food today. The kind of food you would get served on a yoga retreat. Maybe it is because I have increased my yoga practice lately and I am feeling more mellow than I have in a while, or maybe because it is a lazy weekend type of food. Healthy, slow and comforting. What I like about this curry is it is surprisingly light. Something about the banana and fresh herbs and onions make it feel like a tropical holiday in a bowl.  If only I could slip away to the tropics for the weekend...

Sweet vegetable coconut curry 

Curry
2 cups sweet potato peeled and diced
2 cups pumpkin peeled and diced
2 cups broccoli cut into small florets
2 cups zucchini diced
1 cup peas
 3 spring onions
1tbsp curry powder
1 can coconut milk
1 tsp of salt 
1 tbsp peanut butter
1 tbsp coconut oil
1 can chickpeas drained and rinsed

Rice
1 tbsp coconut oil
1 & 1/2 cups long grain brown rice

1/4 cup shredded coconut
1 banana sliced to serve 
Fresh coriander to serve

Process
Heat coconut oil in a large saucepan, add the curry powder and stir over a medium heat until fragrant. Add the pumpkin and sweet potato and pour in about 1/2 a cup of water. bring to the boil and then cover and reduce to a simmer until the vegetables are soft. Add the salt, peanut butter and the coconut milk and remove from the heat.
Put the rice on. Heat the coconut oil from the rice in a small saucepan. Fry the rice until it begins to go transparent. Cover the rice with 3 cups of water and bring to the boil. Reduce to the lowest heat possible and simmer for 45min. 
Put the shredded coconut in a small dry saucepan over a low heat and stir constantly until toasted to your liking. Set aside. 
About 10mins before you want to eat bring the curry back up to the boil, stir in the remaining vegetables and chickpeas and cover for 5mins to steam through. The veggies should stay slightly crunchy to contrast with the soft pumpkin and sweet potato. 
When the vegetables are cooked, remove from the heat and stir through the spring onions. Serve the rice and curry in a large bowl and garnish with sliced banana, toasted coconut and coriander.