A Big Ol' Pot of Vegetarian Chili

By Jaclyn

Something about the cooler weather makes me want to eat all of my food with a spoon. There are lots of delicious soups and bisques to warm your belly, but for me, the best cool weather dish is hot vegetarian chili.
My vegetarian chili is sweet, spicy, and really easy to make. Everything can be done in one big pot, which means no piles of dirty dishes!

Vegetarian Chili:
(Serves at least 8. I eat this for days.)

Ingredients:
1 28 oz can tomato sauce
1 15 oz can of diced tomato, drained (I get the kind with the Mexican spices)
1 6 oz can of tomato paste
1 15 oz can of dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 package of frozen corn (or fresh corn if you have it. I usually use the Steamfresh super sweet corn)
1 package of Morningstar Farms veggie grounds, or other vegetarian ground hamburger substitute
1 medium to medium-large onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 medium jalapeno, seeded and chopped
1 tbsp chili powder
1/2 tbsp red pepper flakes
1/2 tbsp cumin (the spice of the gods)
1/2 tbsp dry ground mustard
1/2 tbsp table sugar
1/2 tbsp kosher salt
Olive oil
20 grinds of cracked black pepper
More salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Put about a half a tablespoon of olive oil in the chili pot on medium heat and add the chopped onion and garlic. Let the aromatics get aromatic, then add the Morningstar veggie grounds. Stir the onions, garlic and grounds until the grounds are warm, then add the tomato products and the kidney beans. Add all of the spices, the corn, and the jalapeno. Stir until heated through and salt and pepper to taste. I usually let this simmer for a few hours, but you can really eat it just like that.

Depending on my mood, I might add a bit more chili powder and red pepper flake. If it gets too hot, I've been known to add a square of dark chocolate. You can pretty much add anything in here and it will be insanely flavorful and it will feed you for days.

I like to serve this with a dollop of low fat sour cream and some shredded cheddar and a warm multigrain baguettea or some corn tortillas.


The best part is that this is chock full of veggies and fiber. Mmm, delicious fiber.

Happy Fall!