For my entire life, I have loved chili. Like, a lot. I would eat it once a week from October to March if the rest of my family didn’t get sick of it after awhile. I truthfully don’t understand how it’s possible to get tired of a bit comforting bowl of deliciousness.
Where did my love of chili begin? Well, my mom. She makes the best chili! Her recipe is absolutely flawless as well. As long as you follow it, there is no going wrong.
When I went vegetarian almost 10 years ago, I had a very sad moment of realization. That chili. It’s never going to happen again. I will forever miss out on my mom’s chili. I wasn’t sure how I was going to handle that fact. Maybe I’d have a vegetarian + mom’s chili lifestyle. That would be do-able, right? Not so much. Especially because a large portion of my decision to go vegetarian has to do with animal rights and cruelty… not just the health side of things. So, it was something I would just have to accept.
And I did for a few years. I went without chili. Those were some empty days, let me tell ya! The winters were long. They were colder than normal. It just wasn’t the same.
Then about 5 years ago, when I really started to get into cooking and baking, I decided to try my hand at a vegetarian chili. The first batch was meh. The second was better. And then the third was ick. I kept tweeking the recipe in an attempt to experience chili the way I remembered all those years growing up.
Finally, about 4 years ago, sitting down at the dinner table with yet another batch of chili, my now-wife asked me if I wrote down the ingredients to this chili? I hadn’t, but I asked her why. She said, “This is it! This is the only chili I want to eat for the rest of my life. This reminds me of home. Start writing now before you forget!”
So there I was, jotting everything down as quickly as I could remember. Looking over the recipe I thought to myself, this is truly the simplest recipe I’ve ever come up with, yet it’s one of the most delicious! I think that’s something I can work with!
I am so thrilled to know that I don’t have to miss out. The chili I make now as a vegetarian still reminds me of my mom’s chili. It’s still comforting. It’s still something I could eat once a week throughout the cooler months. We’ll say that this is my mom’s chili – just a little evolved.
Ingredients
- 1/2 medium onion , diced
- 1 can diced tomatoes
- 1 can tomato sauce
- 1 can corn
- 1 can white northern beans
- 1 can black beans
- 1 can chili-ready beans
- 1 package Veggie "Beef" Crumbles (I use Morningstar)
- 1 cup vegetable broth
- 1 packet chili seasoning
- 1/2 Tablespoon dried basil
- salt and pepper , to taste
- 1 teaspoon garlic salt
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 Tablespoon chili powder
- Cheese & sour cream , for topping (optional)
Instructions
On the stove:
- Add vegetable beef crumbles and onion to a large soup pot and let onions become translucent and crumbles thaw.
- Once that has been achieved, add all remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil for about 3-4 minutes. Drop the heat down to medium, so your pot is as a consistent low simmer. Let simmer for 30 minutes to an hour, stirring occasionally. The longer you let simmer, the more the flavors will combine.
- Remove the bay leaf.
- Serve in bowls and top with cheese and sour cream.
In the crockpot:
- Thaw vegetable crumbles. Combine all ingredients in the crockpot. Cook on high for about 4 hours.
- Remove the bay leaf.
- Serve in bowls and top with cheese and sour cream.
molly says
what is a good substitute for 1 packet of chili seasoning?
Holly Waterfall says
Molly here is a post for DIY Chili Seasoning – http://www.budgetbytes.com/2014/01/homemade-chili-seasoning/
Leah says
I made this for dinner tonight…it was amazing!!!
Holly Waterfall says
Awesome! I’m so glad you enjoyed it. I make it every couple of weeks and we gobble it up every time!
Leslie Lambert says
Oh this look absolutely delicious…I need to keep this one for colder weather! This would be great to link up to Create It Thursday…it’s live now! Hope to see you there!
Linda Loosli says
This looks fabulous Holly!
Diana Rambles says
Yummy!
Holly Waterfall says
Thanks!
Sarah says
I love a good bowl of chili but I am not a big meat eater, just don’t care for it. I am always in search of a tasty satisfying chili recipe. Thanks for sharing this one.
Holly Waterfall says
This one will be sure to satisfy!
Camille says
I love meat (so sorry!), but this really does look amazing! 🙂
PS This is such a good pic!!! 🙂
Holly Waterfall says
Thanks Camille! And I was totally hating this one while I was shooting. My lighting was crappy. I had no props to go with. And I shot it in about 2 minutes trying to get prepared for trick-or-treaters.
Don’t be a veggie hater… try this one out, you won’t be sorry!! 🙂
Katie Clark says
This sounds great — and I’m definitely not a vegetarian. I might have to make it sometime (we have to get down on meat anyways, as my son has really high triglycerides for some reason.) Chili is the best!
Heather @ French Press says
we love chili – well everyone but Stella, and I bet she would try it in a bread bowl! Looks great holly
Holly Waterfall says
Carbs really make it all better, ya know… 😉 I hope you try it out!
Marty@A Stroll Thru Life says
Sounds fabulous. Thanks for the recipe. I would love to have you link up to my Inspire Me party that goes live on Monday at 2:30 PT. http://www.astrollthrulife.net Hope to see you there. Hugs, Marty
Holly Waterfall says
thanks for coming by Marty!
Chelsea says
This looks so good! I’ve been a vegetarian my whole life, and the chili I make my husband smells so good but I wouldn’t eat it because of the beef. This looks like it would be delicious, and I love the bread bowl idea!
Holly Waterfall says
I bet if you made this one, your husband would love it and you’d be happy too!