Slow-Cooker Black Bean-Mushroom Chili

Photo by Rachel's Bite, Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial 3.0 US licensed.   

I try to make as many recipes as beans as possible. They seem like a miracle food! Cheap, healthy, and filling. I order often from Rancho Gordo because I think their beans are high quality and I never know how long a pack of beans have been sitting around on a shelf at the store. It's not that they go bad or anything, but I find fresher beans more flavorful.

This recipe for Slow-Cooker Black Bean-Mushroom Chili appealed to me not only for the use of beans, but also because I am a huge mushroom fan AND you get to use your slow cooker! You do end up with a really tasty dinner but it is nothing like traditional chili. The use of tomatillos and chipotle peppers gives it a really great flavor and I find those ingredients fun to play with.

The recipe for Slow-Cooker Black Bean-Mushroom Chili is available on EatingWell.com.

Love is all around you... Enjoy!

- Rachel

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Poblano White Chili

I've never been attracted to the concept of "white" chili. I guess I'm much of a purist and prefer chili to be red and with beans and meat. However, the photo for Poblano White Chili in the October, 2010 issue of Vegetarian Times magazine looked so good that I knew I had to try it. I was really drawn to the use of poblanos, corn and roasted pumpkin seeds as well.

We roasted the poblanos on the grill one night when we were grilling our last brats of the season. They kept for several days before we made this chili. I was also able to use fresh corn kernels and I think they made a big difference. I should have tried to roast my own pumpkin seeds, but I bought them already roasted and salted.

This chili goes together very quickly. And the goat cheese sauce that you pair with the chili makes it really special. The sauce has a nice tang.

Poblano White Chili Serves 8 3 cups cooked white beans or 2 15.5-oz. cans white beans, rinses and drained 1 recipe Rajas (see below) 2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth 2 tsp. dried oregano 1 tsp. ground cumin 1 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels 1/2 cup chopped cilantro, plus more for garnish 1 Tbs. lime juice 1/4 cup low-fat milk 3 oz. fresh goat cheese 1/4 cup roasted pumpkin seeds

Bring beans, Rajas, broth, oregano, and cumin to a simmer in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in corn, cilantro, and lime juice. Season with salt and pepper, if desired. Cook 2 minutes more.

Warm milk in separate saucepan. Add goat cheese, and stir until smooth. Serve chili garnished with goat cheese sauce, pumpkin seeds, and cilantro.


Rajas
Makes 2 cups

6 poblano chiles (1 lb.)
2 tsp. vegetable oil
1 large onion, thinly sliced (2 cups)
2 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
1 tsp. dried oregano

Roast and peel poblanos. Slice into 1/4-inch strips; set aside.
Heat oil in skillet over medium heat. Add onion and garlic, and cook 5 to 9 minutes, or until onion is soft and golden brown. Add oregano and poblano strips, and cook 3 to 4 minutes more, or until heated through. Season with salt and pepper, if desired.

Nutritional information as printed in magazine:
Per 1-cup serving: 219 Cal; 12 G Prot; 6 G Total Fat (2 G Sat Fat); 31 G Carb; 5 MG Chol; 250 MG Sod; 6 G Fiber; 4 G Sugars




See more legume recipes in the My Legume Love Affair (MLLA) roundup hosted for October by Divya at Dil Se.

Dante's Inferno Chili

When I was in junior high school, my step-father often made dinner. He was a fireman and usually did all of the cooking on his shift. So in 1984 when the city held a fireman's chili cookoff, which pinned all the firehouses in the city against each other to determine which one made the best chili, my step-father played around and came up with his own recipe. And he won! But then again, how could anything that starts by cooking green peppers in half a cup of butter now win?

"I went through about five recipes and had feelings about certain spices and ingredients and then added some of my own," Donati said. "I think the wine is the key ingredient. It gives the chili some body and an aroma." Another reason Donati believes he clinched the title is that he cuts the onion and green pepper in large pieces instead of mincing them.

For us it was so exciting! We were dragged downtown to a crowded convention center with a bunch of people tasting chili and the next thing we know, they announced our step-father as the winner and the newspapers were flashing photos of us all giving him hugs. The picture on the front page of the food section that week was my sister getting a hug from him - you could only see the reflection from my glasses in the photo. As part of the prizes he won a few weekend stays at Hyatt hotels and his chili was added to the menu at the a downtown restaurant for a while.

Like myself, my step-father never really made the same thing twice, so we didn't keep eating that chili over and over. It was pretty much just a one time great food related memory. I did dig out the recipe though and made it for myself. My whole family sampled it again and the general consensus was that it needed salt! How the heck did this win and get published in a newspaper and all that without any salt in it? Oh well, if you make it, I suggest adding some of your own. Because if you add some cheese, onions and a little salt, it's really yummy!


Below is the recipe as printed in the Chicago Tribune on October 11, 1984.

Dante's Inferno
10 servings

½ cup butter for frying
1 pound green peppers, seeded, coarsely chopped
3 cups chopped onions
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 pounds coarsely ground chuck
1 pound coarsely ground pork
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon cumin
1½ teaspoons cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon black pepper
5 tablespoons hot chili powder
1 can (28 ounces) whole tomatoes, chopped
1 can (10½ ounces) beef broth
1 cup dry red wine, such as burgundy
1 can (6 ounces) tomato paste
½ teaspoon crushed hot red pepper
1 tablespoon salt
2 cans (16 ounces each) dark red kidney beans

Melt butter in a large skillet and saute peppers about 10 minutes. Add onions and garlic; cook 5 more minutes. Add beef and port mixture; increase heat to high. Cook, stirring occasionally, until meat is no longer pink, ab out 10 to 15 minutes.

Stir in cumin, basil, cayenne, black pepper and chili powder. Stir in tomatoes, beef broth, wine, tomato paste, hot red pepper and salt. Simmer, covered, about 1½ hours.

Add kidney beans; simmer for an additional 45 minutes. Serve with extra sharp shredded cheddar cheese.

Note: For a milder version, use only 3 tablespoons of chili powder and ½ teaspoon cayenne.




See more hearty recipes for Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammies) Sundays hosted weekly by Kahakai Kitchen.