Baby it's Cold Outside and that Means Chili...

Its bloody cold here in Southern California these days....ok -- it's not Minnesota cold -- but the reason we have over 8 million people living here is because of the great weather.  We Southern Californians aren't used to this kinda cold. Yesterday we were colder than Chicago!



Baby it's cold outside and that means its time for soups and chili. Here is my recipe for hearty vegan chili.



First thing in the morning (or you can do this the night before) is to soak fresh black beans for about 3 hours...then I boil them on low heat until they are fairly easy to smash with a fork. Since there is just me and my hubby, I start with a 1/2 cup fresh beans which turns into at least a cup after they are cooked.



When the beans are done I take out my large soup pot and pour in some olive oil...just enough so I can sautee an onion, which I already chopped up before hand.



When the onions are carmelized I throw in a 16 oz. can of organic tomatoes (any size will do...if they are whole tomatoes, I put them in blender for 1 second)


Then add 1/3 bag frozen organic corn (I buy mine from trader Joes)...stir in black beans and let simmer. If you want you can add chopped up organic potatoes to make it thicker. A green pepper is good too, but we aren't big on green peppers in this household.



So where's the chili seasoning???   I used to buy the ready made but now I make my own...I want to know exactly whats in my food. The ready made only list a couple of ingredients  and the rest are"natural spices"...ok, what constitutes "natura"l these days? After finding out what companies put into our processed foods...with the blessing of our FDA...I don't trust them...sooo I found this terrific chili/taco seasoning recipe from another blogger...you can find her over here... http://www.mybakingaddiction.com/homemade-chili-and-taco-seasoning/


For this recipe I use 2 heaping tablespoons chili mix...if you want more you can season to taste.



Here's how to make your own chili seasoning:

4 tablespoons of chili powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 teaspoons paprika
2 tablespoons ground cumin
3 teaspoons sea salt
4 teaspoons black pepper
 

this makes about 2/3 cup. I keep it in a ziplock baggie for future use.



Sometimes I add a tablespoon of vegan sour cream on top of my bowl. Yum!


xo     Inge