Vegetarian Chili

From Better Homes & Gardens, January, 1997

2 Tbsp. olive oil	1 tsp. sugar
1 ½ cups chopped celery	1 ½ tsp. dried basil, crushed
1 ½ cups chopped red or yellow pepper	1 ½ tsp. dried oregano, crushed
1 cup chopped onion	1 ½ tsp. ground cumin
3 cloves garlic, minced	1 tsp. ground allspice
2 28 oz. cans tomatoes, cut up	½ tsp. salt
3 15-16 oz. cans beans (kidney, black, northern (cannellini), pinto, and/or garbanzo, rinsed and drained	¼ tsp. pepper ¼ tsp bottle hot pepper sauce 1 bay leaf
½ cup raisins, dark or golden	1 12-oz. can beer
¼ cup red wine vinegar	¾ cup cashew nuts
1 cup shredded Swiss, mozzarella or cheddar cheese (or a blend), optional	3- 4 tsp chili powder 1 Tbsp. snipped parsley (optional)

This has been one of my favorite chilis since 1997! I hope you enjoy it, as well. In a 4- to 6- quart pot heat oil. Add celery, pepper, onion, and garlic. Cover and cook over medium to low heat about 10 minutes or until vegetables are tender, stirring occasionally.

Stir in undrained tomatoes, drained beans, raisins, vinegar, chili powder, parsley, sugar, basil, oregano, cumin, allspice, salt, pepper, hot pepper sauce, and bay leaf. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for about 1 ½ hours. Stir in beer. Return to boiling; simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes more or to desired consistency. Remove bay leaf.

Easy tip: Put all the dry spices and the sugar into a tiny bowl before you begin. I wait until I serve this to add cashews. If we have leftovers, the cashews don’t get soggy. Also I prefer it without the cheese. And I try to mix up the kinds of beans. If you find you only have a 16 oz. can of beer, I’d suggest drinking the extra! I used to use Tabasco sauce, but now I prefer Cholula.

Makes about 12 cups, or 8 main dish servings.

Nosing around the internet, I found that the recipe remains on the Better Homes & Gardens site! They now add corn and zucchini.

333 calories per serving, 11 grams total fat, 960 mg sodium.

Kathy McIntosh

The junction of mystery, laughter, and adventure

2 Tbsp. olive oil

1 tsp. sugar

1 ½ cups chopped celery

1 ½ tsp. dried basil, crushed

1 ½ cups chopped red or yellow pepper

1 ½ tsp. dried oregano, crushed

1 cup chopped onion

1 ½ tsp. ground cumin

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp. ground allspice

2 28 oz. cans tomatoes, cut up

½ tsp. salt

3 15-16 oz. cans beans (kidney, black, northern (cannellini), pinto, and/or garbanzo, rinsed and drained

¼ tsp. pepper

¼ tsp bottle hot pepper sauce

1 bay leaf

½ cup raisins, dark or golden

1 12-oz. can beer

¼ cup red wine vinegar

¾ cup cashew nuts

1 cup shredded Swiss, mozzarella or cheddar cheese (or a blend), optional

3- 4 tsp chili powder

1 Tbsp. snipped parsley (optional)

This Post Has One Comment