Hearty Veggie Chili

The air's cool, there have been dozens of pumpkin sightings, and smiling scarecrows are stationed in lawns and doorways. I know what that means! It's time for soups, stews, chili, and everything pumpkiny!

You don't have to give up comfort food just because you want to be healthy and meat-free! This chili is hearty and delicious, just the thing for those nippy autumn evenings. And the best part? It is super easy to make! The hardest part is waiting for it! And it doesn't even take that long, about an hour from cutting board to bowl. You can also customize this recipe to include whatever veggies you have lying around. I like to put zucchini or yellow squash, green beans, or frozen peas, even a bit of potato. This recipe makes quite a bit, enough to serve a family dinner and lunch, and maybe then some if you have side dishes like cornbread, brown rice, and maybe some pumpkin spice cookies for dessert*.

I apologize for the lack of mouth-watering photos in this post. I didn't take any pictures last time I made this, but I wanted to get the recipe out before the weather gets hot again. And in Texas, you know it won't be long!

To make Hearty Veggie Chili you'll need:

• 3 stalks of celery
• 1 small onion
• 2 carrots
• 1 bell pepper
• 2 Tbs olive oil 
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1 28-ounce can of diced tomatoes
• 1 28-ounce can of crushed tomatoes
• 1 can of black beans
• 1 can kidney beans
• 1-2 cups of frozen corn
• 1 Tbs chili powder 
• 1 Tbs cumin
• 1 Tbs cocoa powder (not hot chocolate mix!)
• cayenne, salt, and pepper to taste
• cilantro for garnish

Start by chopping the celery, onion, carrots, and bell pepper. In a large soup pot, add the olive oil and saute the veggies until tender, about 15 minutes. While the veggies soften, take a minute to open the cans so they'll be ready to go and you won't burn the garlic in the next step.

Now, add the garlic. I use a garlic press, but you can mince it if you don't have one. When the garlic browns a bit, pour in the tomatoes and beans. When it comes to a boil, add the chili powder, cumin, and cocoa. Don't be afraid of the cocoa; your chili will not taste like chocolate at all! The cocoa just gives it a nice rich color and more complex flavor.

Let the chili simmer for about 20 minutes, then add the corn. Let it simmer again for about 15 minutes, then taste and adjust the spices. Stir in some chopped cilantro just before enjoying.

*A note about the cornbread and cookie links: they are great recipes! You should try them! I served the cookies at a party, and they were devoured. That they were vegan was my little secret. 

Cajun Stuffed Peppers

I'm super excited about posting this recipe! I've been meaning to put it up for a couple of weeks, but I've just been busy. Boo! Anyway, I'm really excited because this is the first time I've made my own recipe. Usually I just make something from a recipe I find somewhere and alter it until I like it. This time, I knew what I wanted to make, and basically just winged it (wung it?). And it turned out really well! My stuffed peppers were super yummy!

After discovering that lentils are a good replacement for ground beef for my tacos, I starting thinking about what else I could do with them. I decided to try my hand at stuffed bell peppers. I'm pretty happy with how they turned out, too. The peppers were tender, and the filling was hearty and flavorful. This was my first time making dirty rice or stuffed peppers, vegan or otherwise, so I may tweak this recipe in the future, adding some breadcrumbs and nutritional yeast as a topping, and experimenting with the rice filling. I'd also like to try it with quinoa in place of rice to make a Paleo version. But tweaks or no, these were really good! I happily had them for dinner, lunch, and dinner again. 

Sorry for the bad quality, my good camera was MIA.

To make these peppers, you'll need:

• 4 bell peppers 
• 2 stalks of celery
• 1 small onion
• 2 cups of brown rice
• 2 cups of lentils
• 2 small tomato sauces 
• Cajun seasoning (I used Tony Chachere's)
• Salt

Begin by preheating the oven to 400 degrees and putting the rice and lentils on to cook so they will be ready to use when you're ready to mix up the filling. I put the rice in rice cooker, just for convenience, but you can do it on the stove or however you usually cook your rice. For the lentils, just boil them in a pot with enough water to cover them. Next, wash the peppers and remove the tops and seeds. Reserve the tops for cooking with the rice.  You may need to trim the bottoms a bit to get the peppers to be able to sit up straight (I ended up trimming the one in the back right to get it straighter). Just be careful not to cut so much from the bottom that you make a hole. You don't want to lose your yummy filling! If you do trim the bottoms, keep them too for cooking into the filling.

Opened and de-seeded. 

 

Next, put a large pot of water on to boil. You're going to boiling the peppers for a few minutes, so make sure the pot is large enough for them. While the water heats, chop the celery, onion, and reserved bell pepper tops. Saute the veggies in a large skillet. 

Veggies!

Next, carefully place the peppers into the boiling water and boil for about 5 minutes.  They shouldn't be all the way cooked, just softened a little. You'll be baking them later, so don't worry.

Boiling!

 

 

 I neglected to take pictures of the next couple of steps, forgive me! When the rice and lentils are done, and when the veggies are softened in the skillet, add the rice and lentils to the skillet along with one container of tomato sauce and a good sprinkling of Cajun seasoning and salt. Cook over low heat for a few minutes until the sauce has absorbed and cooked down and the flavors have combined.

Meanwhile, place the peppers in a baking dish with a little water. I put a little tomato sauce in the water, but I think it wasn't needed. Taste the rice filling and adjust the spices, then spoon into the peppers and top with tomato sauce. Pop 'em in the oven for about 20 minutes, or until the peppers are tender.

Ready for baking!

The final product!

I served them alongside roasted sweet potatoes and shallots with rosemary, and a green salad with tomatoes. This was a really good meal!

Bon appetit!