Hearty chili stew

This chili is just another version of what I made last week with beans and beets and grains--just a change of starch and spices.  Housemate hates beets so I felt sorry for her and decided to make something she would like.  So now I have two different entrees in my freezer for variation.  This makes it really easy during the week.

Ingredients:
1 lb dry beans
1/2 cup lentils
1/3 cup spelt berries
1/3 cup hulled barley
1/3 cup brown rice (I mixed forbidden rice with that)
1/3 cup oat groats
1 large onion or 2 medium
several garlic cloves
1 large sweet potato or 2 small, peeled and chopped
1 large rutabaga or 2 small, peeled and chopped
mushrooms, 1/2 lb or so, whatever you have
two 16 oz cans tomatoes
chili powder, 2 Tbsp (or more, to taste)
cumin powder, 2 tsp
oregano, 2 tsp
smoked paprika, 1 tsp
chipotle powder, a sprinkle to taste (it's hot but has an awesome flavor so I just put in a little)
lime juice, say 1 oz
fresh cilantro (optional)

Soak the dry beans overnight in one pot.  Soak the spelt berries and barley overnight in another pot.  In the morning, add the rice and oat groats to the grains with enough water (too much is okay since it's going into a soup), cook them up for an hour.  Add the lentils and spices to the beans and cook them up for 2-4 hours (varies depending on beans and freshness).  In the afternoon, or whenever you get to it, fry up the onions (dry, add water as needed), add the sweet potato and rutabaga, add some water, cook until tender.  Add the mushrooms and tomatoes near the end.  Combine everything into a very large pot, and let the flavors soak in as it all cools.  Add the lime juice and a bunch of chopped cilantro.   eat and enjoy.   I might add some soy yogurt to mine tomorrow though it's not needed at all.

Awesome chili

This chili was inspired by Chef AJ's Red Lentil Chili, but in the end I think I only had a few overlapping ingredients, ha.  Well I didn't have red lentils, and I had a bunch of wonderful veggies I wanted to cook up and...so it went.  I did like her spices though and followed them pretty closely.  Here's my version, and as usual, the amounts and even the ingredients don't matter too much, use whatever you like or have on hand.

Ingredients:
1 lb of beans.  I used 1/2 lb pinto, and 1/2 lb lentils (half green, half brown).
2 15-oz cans of tomatoes
1 large onion
1small bulb of garlic or 1/2 large
a bunch of your favorite veggies:  I used eggplant, carrots, zucchini, and a giant red bell pepper.
Something sweet:  1 large beet (or 2 medium) or a sweet potato or some mango or some pineapple, or some dates or some maple syrup (take your pick or picks)
spices and herbs:   I had some fresh parsley, sage, chives and rosemary
1.5 Tbsp salt-free chili powder or to taste
2 tsp smoked paprika (smoked is key)
1/2 tsp chipotle powder (also gives a smokey flavor)
more chipotle if you like it hot, and some crushed red pepper if you like it hot (I don't really).
2 Tbsp apple basalmic or apple cider vinegar (more if you want).
I forgot scallions but that sounds pretty good as a topping if you want it.

cook up the beans in a large pot (soaked overnight, or do a quick soak:  boil then sit for an hour) or open up a few cans of beans.
prep the veggies:   cut them up, peel as desired.    I cooked the beets separately because I wanted to blend them.  the rest I put in a large pan with 1 cup water, covered in foil, baked at 375 for 1 hour.  don't bother cutting the garlic, just put the bulb in (see picture).

When this was done, I blended the beets and one cat of tomatoes and the garlic.  For the garlic, cut off the bottom, and then sqeeze out the garlic--super easy!  I took the rosemary out and poured the veggies into the bean pot.  I added the beet/tomato/garlic puree and the other spices and herbs.   It was delicious before adding the spices so I knew it was going to be good.  

Here is a bowl served up with lunch.  Someone else got a brat so everyone was happy.

mmm, Chili!

I was just planning to make my usual weekly pot o' beans, and it turned into a great pot of chili.   I always start with Dr. Fuhrman's recommended GOMB ingredients (Greens, onions/garlic, mushrooms, beans).  The beans I need for protein, calories and lots of other great reasons; the others are great for fighting cancer, plus they add flavor and texture.  Then I thought, huh, I could just add some chili powder, tomatoes, corn, and make some chili!   I looked up some recipes and saw cumin and oregano listed, so I added some of that too (the second time I didn't and I preferred it without).

Ingredients
1 lb dried beans, or 2-3 cans   (pinto, kidney, a dark bean, or just about anything---I used a mixture from rancho gordo)
2 16-oz cans tomatoes, or 1 28-oz can
1-2 onions
2-4 cloves garlic
1 lb mushrooms, any type
1 bunch greens, e.g., kale, collards, mustard, etc.
2 cups sweet corn (1 bag frozen) (optional)
1-2 Tbsp chili powder, to taste
1 tsp oregano and cumin (optional, I prefer without)

Toppings (optional)
chopped cilantro, chives, ramps, scallions, anything like that
home-made soy yogurt

Soak the beans overnight, or do a quick soak (bring to boil, then let sit for an hour).   Cook the beans for about 3 hours.  After 1 hour you can add the onions, garlic and seasoning.  Depending on how well-cooked you want the greens, you can add them to the chili at your preferred time or cook them separately.  I prefer them pretty tender and well-cooked, so I cooked them in the pressure cooker, then added them to the chili and let them simmer there for another hour (admittedly I was motivated by a sore tooth, but I ended up really liking the tenderness of them cooked this way).  I added the mushrooms in the last hour.  I added the tomatoes and corn towards the end.  The tomatoes can interfere with the cooking of the beans and they are cooked already anyway.  The corn hardly needs any cooking, especially if you like it a little crunchy.  If you like it tender, add it earlier.

Here's 10 servings ready for the freezer.

New Year's Day food

Today I wasn't too hungry after the rich treats from yesterday--I ate more than enough of that almond chocolate dip, oh yeah, and the ice cream. So I didn't eat until after noon when I started getting hungry. Then I snacked on raw veggies while I was making Dr. Fuhrman's "Easy Three Bean Vegetable Chili." Here's a picture:

I didn't make it exactly like the recipe because I used a fresh onion, and romanesco broccoli instead of frozen broccoli and cauliflower; but it was pretty close overall. I like this recipe. The crumbled tofu (after freezing and thawing), and finely chopped vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower) have the consistency of ground beef, though obviously not the taste. The finely chopped zucchini when it cooks makes a nice thickener. However, without salt, the chili was a bit bland. I added some more cumin and chili powder and it was still bland. Then I got inspired and added some cinnamon and a finely chopped apple (in the food processor). That and the sweet corn provided just enough extra sweetness and flavor to make up for the lack of salt. Then it was very good.

Dinner was chili, a pomegranate, and some raw veggies during the rose bowl. It's not looking good for the badgers so I'm distracting myself.

Tomorrow will be another day of entertaining friends and stressing out over a football game.

Three-bean chili

This is an easy recipe. I made it for a potluck. Since I don't add salt, I added things to make it taste sweet. I think regular people would like this (hence, a good potluck dish). I put the amounts as ranges because it depends on what you have an hand and what you like more--it's hard to ruin it with too much or too little of something.

Ingredients:

1-2 onions

1-4 garlic cloves (to taste)

1-2 large sweet potatoes

2-3 large carrots

2 16-oz cans of tomatoes

3 cans of beans, different kinds: I used black soy, red kidney, and chick peas. pinto would be good too, and black beans too.

1-2 red or green bell peppers (optional; I didn't have any today).

2-3 Tbsp chili powder

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp oregano

1/4-1/2 tsp cinnamon or cinnamon stick

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)

2 cups frozen sweet corn

1-2 Tbsp date syrup (optional)

Run the carrots, and onions through a food processor. The resulting texture after cooking is a bit similar to the ground meat in chili. Add the spices (except cinnamon), and some water and start cooking the carrots and onions. Run the sweet potatoes, peppers, and garlic through the food processor too (or chop with a knife if you prefer). Add the tomatoes, veggies, and water to the pan and cook for about 20 minutes. Add the beans, cook some more. Add the cinnamon stick for about 5 minutes (then remove), or add the ground cinnamon. Add the corn and date syrup in the last 5-10 minutes. Total cooking time is about an hour.

hotpot chili

I made this in my hotel tonight and thought it was very good. I got this recipe idea from Lynne on the Fuhrman forums, especially the pineapple addition. Hers has more ingredients for a bigger batch. This has to fit into a hot pot so I cut out the mushrooms and onions. Feel free to add those in too.

Ingredients:

1 green bell pepper

1 shredded carrot

1 small potato (optional, I just had one that needed eating)

1 16 oz can tomatoes

1 can red kidney beans

4-8 oz pineapple (8 oz is to much for most people but I love pineapple)

1-3 tsp chili powder

other spices you might like (I added some cumin, fines herbs, and pumpkin pie spice)

Cut the bell pepper, carrot, and potato into small pieces so it will cook faster. Add everything to the hot pot but the pineapple and and beans, and cook for 20 minutes on medium setting. Add the beans, cook some more. Add the pineapple. Cook until tender, probably 30 minutes total.

Here's a picture after dishing out 2 bowls: