Chili Time

I saw this post the other day, and was eager to try it.  So on Sunday, I finally did.


I modified Teri (over at A Foodie Stays Fit)'s Famous Vegetarian 3-Bean Chili recipe. Let me just tell you... She nailed it.  It. Is. Good!  Really good.  She was not kidding when she said that there was just one step, "throw it all in a pot." The most time-consuming part of the process was opening all of the cans of beans and tomatoes. I topped it with some guacamole and a blend of plain yogurt and sour cream. I was very pleased that mine turned out as thick as if there were meat in it, not watery like most veggie chili.

Nom! Nom! Nom! 

TERI'S  INGREDIENTS:  (my modifications are noted in parentheses, in blue)

• 1 can black beans, drained & rinsed   (I used 2 cans)
• 2 cans kidney beans, drained & rinsed
• 1 can pinto beans, drained & rinse
• 1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes with juice   (I used 1 14oz can, and 2x 10oz cans of spicy mix tomatoes)
• 1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste   (I skipped this -- I didn't have any paste)
• 1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
• 1 large yellow onion, chopped   (I only used half, and I did--as Teri mentions in her recipe--sauté them on the stove)
• 3 stalks celery, chopped   (I skipped this)
• 1 red or green bell pepper, chopped   (I used red pepper)
• 1 jalepeno, finely diced (to taste…I like things medium spicy, so usually use half the pepper with only                              (I skipped this)
• 1/4 cup (heaping) chili powder   (I used less than an 1/8 cup, and there was still a LOT of kick -- I think I would still use less in the future, especially with the spicy tomato blend)
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce   (I skipped this)
• 2 large (or 4 average) garlic cloves, minced   (I used 3 large cloves)
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano   (I used 1/2 tbsp)
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin   (I used 1 tsp)
• 1 teaspoon dried basil   (I used 1/2 tsp)
• 1 teaspoon salt   (I used 1/2 tsp -- I'd rather add salt as needed later)
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper   (I used 1/2 tsp -- I'd rather add it in later)
• 1 teaspoon paprika   (I used 1/2 tsp)
• 1 teaspoon sucanat (or brown sugar)
• Toppings as your heart desires – cheese, sour cream (or greek yogurt), tortilla chips, avocado, etc.

Throw it all into a slow-cooker and cook on either a) high for 2-3 hours or b) low for 4-6 hours.  I promise you, you will be happy and have a nice, warm, full belly of chili goodness :-)


Moreover, I purchased most of the ingredients at Aldi & Trader Joe's (same store, really), so all told, I only spent about $5.00 for everything.

Play around with the recipe.  Tell me how you modified it to your tastebuds, I would love to hear about it.


--happy living