My fav goddess of all things vegan, Isa Chandra Moskowitz, recently published a new cookbook. Naturally, I felt I NEEDED to buy it, so I did (with a little help from a timely coupon from Barnes and Noble). Her cookbooks have become the go-tos of my journey into vegan land; great recipes that come together quickly and easily, peppered with Isa’s entertaining brand of snark. What’s not to love?! Make this recipe and then trot on out or click into your favorite bookstore to buy a copy of Isa Does It. You’ll be glad you did!
On with the recipe then. This is now my go-to chili. Really meaty without even a touch of real or vegan meat. Warming. Spicy. Satisfying. You can make it in a crockpot. Bazinga! Have a look and see for yourself:
I altered the original recipe ever so slightly–I only had a 14-oz can of tomatoes, so subbed in some cherry tomatoes I froze from last summer, subbed pinto beans for the kidney beans, and used No Chicken broth to saute the onion, pepper and garlic, as well as in place of the water called for in the original.
- enough No Chicken Broth or Veggie Broth to saute
- 1 yellow onion, diced medium
- 1 green pepper, seeded, diced medium
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 jalapenos, thinly sliced (seeded, if you want it less spicy)
- 3 to 4 tablespoons mild chili powder
- 1 tablespoon dried mexican oregano
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- Several dashes fresh black pepper
- 1/8th teaspoon ground cloves
- 2 cups No Chicken Broth (plus extra as needed)
- 1 cup dried brown lentils
- 1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes (or 1 14-oz can diced tomatoes plus 2 cups frozen, pureed tomatoes)
- 1 1/2 cups cooked pinto beans, rinsed and drained (15 oz can)
- 1 1/2 cups cooked black beans, rinsed and drained (15 oz can)
- 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
Seems like an intimidating list of ingredients, but fear not. You’ll just methodically measure things out and pretty much dump things into a slow cooker!
First, saute the onion, green pepper and jalapeno until the onion is translucent, about 7 minutes or so.
Add the garlic, and continue to saute until the garlic becomes fragrant, about 30 seconds.
Dump the saute into your crock pot along with everything else on the list. Give it a stir, cover, set the cooker on low, and leave it alone for 8 hours–lentils should be tender. You may want to adjust seasonings after cooking, and possibly add a bit more broth to thin as needed.
Voila! Get home from work, your house smells amazing and you get to enjoy the yummiest chili ever for dinner!
This is a hearty chili that will not only satisfy, but take the chill out of a winter day.
You can also make this in a pot on the stove–see the original recipe for instructions.