Week One: Three Bean Vegetarian Chili

My sister, Jenna, finished college last summer and in late September had a graduation party with a pretty impressive food spread. Many of the offerings were class Wojcik family party standbys, but there were a few surprise entries. The stand out was the veggie chili. Perhaps most surprising was Will's praise. My meat-loving husband isn't usually won over by vegetarian (and in this case vegan!) dishes.

After the party, on the long car ride from MA to PA, both Will and I mentioned the chili. More than once.

I asked Jenna for the recipe. She pointed me towards the Rachel Ray base recipe that she had modified. I modified some of her modifications. The recipe below is the result. It uses dried beans which take a lot longer to cook, but you don't need to babysit it so it's worth it for the better flavor and texture.

Three Bean Vegetarian Chili

Fresh Ingredients

One medium onion-diced

One red pepper- diced

One green pepper- diced

One jalepeno seeded (fresh or pickled)- diced

Four cloves of garlic- chopped

Green onions (for garnish, optional)

Sour cream (for garnish, optional)

Grated cheddar cheese (for garnish, optional)

Pantry Ingredients

3/4 cup dried kidney beans

3/4 cup dried black beans

3/4 cup dried chick peas

1 cup veggie stock

32 ounce can of crushed tomatoes

2 tablespoons chili powder

2 tablespoons cumin

1 tablespoon paprika

2 teaspoons kosher salt

2 tablespoons olive oil

Tortilla chips (for garnish, optional)

1. Give your dried beans the once over to be sure you don't have any rocks or soil or any other surprises lurking. Soak your beans overnight in 8 cups of water.

2. In the morning drain and rinse the beans. If you're cooking them right away, put them in a large pot with plenty of water. Bring them to a boil and then lower to simmer. Simmer for 90 minutes to two hours. (They're done when they are the texture you're going for.) Drain and rinse. If you're not cooking them right away, just put them in a sealed container until you're ready to cook them.

3. In a deep pot over medium heat, add the olive oil, onions, peppers, and garlic. Sweat until softened. Once softened, add the stock, the tomatoes, the beans, spices, and salt. Stir well to combine. Bring the whole mixture to a boil and then lower to a simmer. Cook for as little as 30 minutes or for as long as you like. (I opted for about four hours because I had the time. And I think chili is one of those things that taste better, the longer it cooks.) Garnish however you like and eat up.