Week 43 -- Simple Chili

Fall is definitely the time for a long-simmered chili.  My crockpot is still packed in storage with the rest of my belongings (just a couple weeks until my new house is ready for me -- we're getting there).  So I've put off making chili, because chili that is made and eaten right away just isn't the same as one that's been bubbling for a few hours.

But this week Mom had an afternoon off from work (in exchange for spending a Saturday working -- I helped but didn't realize it would entail hiking in the mud, but we survived and came home that night to the chili leftovers), so she had time to make chili and let it simmer on the stove top for a few hours.

Veggie chili is a simple crowd-pleaser, and it can be served over millet (my favorite), in a bread bowl, over baked potatoes, with tortilla chips, or as a crucial ingredient in plant-based chili "cheese" fries.

You can see my millet peeking out underneath!

Simple Chili

1 onion, diced
1 bell pepper, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 cans of beans (we use light red kidney, dark red kidney, and pinto)
1 quart of crushed tomatoes
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder (we use a single-ingredient ancho chili powder)
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp each sage and thyme
1 tsp miso mixed in a tiny amount of water
(optional: 1/2 tsp lemon juice -- this was in our home-canned tomatoes already and reduces the need for salt)
1 Tbsp carob powder
1/2 Tbsp molasses
1 Tbsp gluten free flour blend mixed in a tiny amount of water

1. Saute onion in a little water.  Add pepper and garlic and continue to saute until soft.
2. Add other ingredients.  Let simmer for several hours until you are ready to enjoy.

Makes about 6 servings.