What's for dinner 9/27/11

3 Bean Chili is what's for dinner! I didn't take pictures of the process because I totally forgot. I 'm not sure how I managed to do that, but oh well. I guess I'll just be extra thorough in my explanations. :) I loved this Chili, and will definitely be making it again. Brad even liked it and he doesn't like a.) beans or b.) spicy things. He did ask me to tone down the seasonings a bit next time, but I probably won't. Haha. It wasn't *that* spicy in the first place. ;) I need to figure out how to photograph my food better. Sometimes it looks awful in these photos. I promise it doesn't taste as gross as it might look!

Recipe (Based on Terry Walter's 3 Bean Chili found in "Clean Food" on page 211). I say "based on" because I didn't follow it exactly and tweaked some things, added others, and left some things out completely.

2 Tbsp Extra virgin Olive Oil
3 Cloves garlic, minced
1/2 of a really huge white onion (do one onion if it's not as huge :) )
1/2 cup diced peppers (I used Trader's Joe's frozen trio pepper strips and chopped them)
1 large carrot, peeled and chopped into small peices
1 sweet potato (bake it and take out the pulp :) )
1 can of fire roasted tomatoes (two if you really like tomatoes)
1 6 oz can of tomato paste
1/2 cup red wine
1/2 tsp oregano
1 tsp cumin
2 tbsp (yes, TABLESPOONS. ;) ) chili powder
1/4 tsp ground cayenne
1/4 tsp sea salt
1 1/2 cups cooked black beans (or 1 can)
1 1/2 cups cooked aduki beans
1 1/2 cups pinto beans
1 32 oz Carton Vegetable or Chicken broth

In a large pot over medium heat, saute garlic and onion in olive oil until soft (about 3 min). Add in peppers and saute 2 min. more. Add the carrots, sweet potato pulp, tomatoes and tomato paste, wine, oregano, cumin, chili powder, cayenne and salt. Add the beans. This will render a very thick chili, add broth to thin. I added the whole carton and let it reduce down by simmering for 1 hour. If you don't add quite as much you could get away with simmering for only 30 to 45 minutes.

Notes about Ingredients:
* Wine- The wine is optional. Add less if you don't want a very bold flavor. This is also optional, you could just use tomato juice or add extra tomatoes. Wine is not exactly "clean", but it is not totally forbidden either. Just remember to drink or use wine in cooking very sparingly and no need to feel guilty!
* Beans- cook your beans first if you are using dry beans. The aduki beans are smaller and don't need to soak as long as other beans. For this recipe I put them in a pot, covered them with water, and brought the water to a boil. Then I took them off the heat, put a lid on it, and let them sit in the hot water for 1 hour. Then I boiled them for about 25 minutes to cook them all the way through.
* Pinto Beans- these don't really come canned and I only had time to cook the aduki beans, so I went with 1 can of white kidney beans. Next time I'm using the pintos though, not because the kidneys were bad, but because I think I would prefer to use three smaller beans as opposed to two smaller beans and gigantic kidneys. Just an aesthetic preference, I think haha.


Overall, this is definitely going in our rotation for fall and winter. I have the leftovers in my freezer to enjoy at a later date. Have fun cooking!