Thursday, January 28, 2016

Three Bean Vegetable Chili

We love chili!  My husband orders it anytime we go out to dinner. I always make a big batch so we can enjoy leftovers throughout the week.  Adding those leftovers to a baked potato, some whole grain pasta, or quinoa really makes a filling and flavorful meal.

Lately, John and I have been trying to follow a more vegetarian diet in order to keep cholesterol low; we have been researching a few different eating plans designed by physicians to lower cholesterol and blood pressure. While this recipe has more ingredients than I usually like, it is very worth it.  I used my food processor to chop all of the vegetables, so I didn't have too much time in preparation.

My husband was shocked when I told him there wasn't any meat in the chili. Also, he isn't a huge fan of cauliflower or zucchini, but he had no clue. This healthier version of chili is now our go-to winter Sunday meal.  Next time, I plan to try it in a slow cooker.



INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 pound firm tofu, defrosted
  • 3 T chili powder
  • 2 t ground cumin
  • 10 oz. onions, frozen
  • 3 cups frozen broccoli, thawed and finely chopped
  • 3 cups frozen cauliflower, thawed and finely chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 can no-salt added pinto beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 can no-salt added black beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 can no-salt added red beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 can no-salt added diced tomatoes 
  • 1 can mild green chilies, drained
  • 1 bag frozen corn kernels
  • 2 large zucchini, finely chopped
  • Vegetable broth, if you'd like a thinner chili
* I have made this without the tofu; we enjoyed it both ways and found it to be quite filling.


DIRECTIONS:
  1. Squeeze excess water from tofu; crumble into soup pot. Add spices. Brown.
  2. Add remaining ingredients and simmer for 2 hours. 



TIME: 20 minute prep; 2 hours cooking time
DIFFICULTY: Medium (lots of ingredients)
SOURCE: adapted from Eat to Live by Joel Fuhrman, M.D.









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