Gluten free Vegetarian Chili that's Fast, Flavorful, and Protein Rich

The multilayered flavor of this vegetarian chili comes from basic pantry ingredients including vegetables and spices. This dish is simple and inexpensive to make, gluten free, vegan, and loaded with plant-based taste, protein, and fiber. Feel free to leave out or add additional vegetables or seasonings, and know any beans you like fit in well. The recipe is adaptable and forgiving so relax and have fun in the kitchen. 

The way this dish is set up now, it yields 4 large or 6 moderate servings. It contains approximately 10 g of protein in every portion, and makes great leftovers too. 

Ingredients

·       1 medium organic red onion, chopped

·       1 large organic red bell pepper, chopped

·       2 medium organic carrots, chopped

·       1 4 oz. can organic mushrooms chopped

·       1 ½ cups organic frozen corn kernels (defrost in refrigerator for a few hours)

·       4 squirts Braggs Liquid Aminos (or 2 tablespoons gluten free low sodium soy sauce)

·       2 large or 4 small cloves garlic chopped

·      3 tablespoons chili powder

·       2 teaspoons ground cumin

·        a few sprigs fresh oregano

·       1 small can (15 ounces) organic diced tomatoes with juice (I used fire roasted tomatoes)

·       1 can (15 oz.) organic black beans, drained

·       1 can (15 oz.) organic mixed beans, drained (the mixed beans I selected contained kidney, black, and pinto beans)

·       1 can (15 oz.) organic kidney beans, drained

·       ½  to 1 jalapeño pepper (use gloves to take out the seeds and cut in half, then chop fine) Omit this ingredient, if you like a milder chili or increase the amount if you like it hot)

·       1 cup water

·       1 bay leaf

·       1 to 2 teaspoons lemon or lime juice (use the juice you like best)

·       Garnishes can include: sliced avocado, guacamole, corn chips, scallions, radish, red onion, gluten free vegan cheese, nutritional yeast. 

What to Do:

      1.  In a large Dutch oven or other heavy-bottomed pot, put in chopped red onion and sauté dry over medium heat until soft (about 2 minutes). Add chopped garlic, red bell pepper, carrots, mushrooms, and stir. Continue to sauté  without oil by  adding a drop of water to fry pan. See more by clicking this link and going to step 2 (directions for browning onion and garlic without oil).

2.   Add chili powder, cumin, and a half to a whole (depending on how hot you like it) jalapeño pepper finely chopped. Stir until fragrant, which should take approximately 1 minute.

3.    Add three cans of beans, water, and bay leaf. If you'd prefer to use cooked dried beans, see how to prepare dried beans.

4.  Stir in canned or cooked dried beans to combine and let the mixture come to a simmer (covered). Add the diced tomatoes and juice. Cover and continue cooking, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat as necessary to maintain a gentle simmer. Cook for 25 minutes. Add corn kernels and lemon or lime juice and cook 5 minutes more. Correct seasoning by adding salt and fresh ground pepper to taste. Remove chili from the heat.

Gluten Free Mixed Bean Chili (Topped with Radish and Onion), Salad with White Bean Dressing, and Quinoa/Corn Chips

Serving Suggestion: This dish is hearty, filling, and tastes great. Place chili in colorful dishes and serve with sides of guacamole, salsa, and steamed brown rice. If you want to keep it real simple, mix cooked brown rice, salsa, and guacamole into chili for a flavorful meal!

Spicy Mixed Bean Chili and Brown Rice, Topped with Guacamole

Why not try this recipe too? Colorful-Tasty-Tucson-Tacos.

Please Note: I write and publish topics of interest for those who want to create and maintain a healthier lifestyle. My Website is www.nancyandreswriter.com. To see information about my writing services, details about the interactive self-care journal, Colors of Joy: A Woman's Guide for Self-Discovery, Balance, and Bliss, and health tips and ideas visit often.

The quote for today follows:

Margaret Cousins, novelist. "Chili is not so much food as a state of mind. Addictions to it are formed early in life and the victims never recover. On blue days in October, I get this passionate yearning for a bowl of chili, and I nearly lose my mind."

Do you eat beans often? What are your favorites? Do you have a go-to chili recipe you'd like to share? Please let me know by commenting in the space provided below.

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Smoky Vegan Split Pea Soup

For a flavorful fall or winter supper, ladle out steaming cups or bowls of smoky vegan split pea soup. It's hearty, delicious, nutrient rich, yet doesn't contain fat or cholesterol.

Prepare it when you know you'll be home for a few hours, whether that's on the weekend or early in the day. Let the soup simmer on the stove, while you work from home, do household tasks, read, jog on a treadmill, or watch TV. 

This recipe goes a long way. It serves at least eight people, and is so versatile. It's great for lunch, dinner, or even as a low-cal snack. Savor its flavor again during the week. This is a simple way to cut down on meal prep time, save energy, and money to boot.

Smoky vegan split pea soup is an economical meatless meal that tempts your taste buds, as 1 pound of organic dried split peas cost approximately $2.99 a pound. Conventional dried peas are approximately $1.99 a pound. Use the seasonings and veggies you already have on hand, and you can whip up a meal you and your brood will love for pennies on the dollar.

Smoky vegan split pea soup is a nutrition star. It fulfills a big chunk of the daily requirement for protein, fiber, complex carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals. This soup is a good source of fuel for your body without added fat. Leftovers freeze well, and eating it when its defrosted and heated prevents food waste too.

One Cup of Homemade Smoky Vegan Split Pea Serves Up:

*Hearty Taste from a Health Promoting Legume that's available throughout the year

*50 percent of the RDA of Vitamin A to help support eye health

*39 percent of Manganese, a mineral that helps maintain strong teeth and bones

*31 percent of B 1 (Thiamine), a b-complex vitamin that helps our bodies produce energy, supports the nervous system, and helps prevent digestive and memory problems

*23 percent of the RDA for B 5 (Pantothenic Acid), a b-complex vitamin that our bodies use to process carbohydrates, proteins, and lipids for healthy skin

*20 percent of the RDA for Potassium to help build muscle and process carbs for energy

*33 percent of the RDA of Protein at 7 grams per serving



*39 percent of the RDA of copper, a mineral that helps incorporate iron into red blood cells to prevent anemia, as well as plays a role to keep blood vessels, nerves, immune system and bones healthy

*Good Source of Soluble and Insoluble Fiber, at 8 grams per serving or 65 percent of the daily requirement. Fiber helps carry toxins out of the body, increases stool bulk, and prevents constipation and other digestive disorders

*A Complex Carbohydrate with approx. 40 carbs per cup. 



* Its glycemic index number is low, but if you want to decrease the glycemic index number further, replace the russet potato in the recipe with parsnip.

Note: Check out this link and scroll down to the section for vegetables to find the "pea" glycemic index number Glycemic Index Chart and Glycemic Load for 100 foods.

*Big flavor, yet is a Low Calorie Meal, at approximately 115 calories per cup

*A Non-fat Recipe that contains Zero Cholesterol

Now, on to the recipe...

Ingredients:

1 pound organic dried green split peas
8 cups water
2 medium chopped organic yellow onions
4 organic chopped carrots
3 stalks organic chopped celery
1/2 organic chopped zucchini
1 small organic chopped russet or sweet potato (lower the glycemic index rating and use chopped parsnip instead)
1 sprig fresh snipped organic basil or organic parsley
1 organic bay leaf
2 sprigs organic snipped oregano or 1 teaspoon dried oregano

4 cloves organic garlic that has been minced
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon dried organic thyme
1 teaspoon dried organic sage
2 teaspoons smoked paprika (this makes soup taste smoky without having to use any smoked meat)
1/2 teaspoon pink salt
4 teaspoons Braggs Liquid Aminos (or gluten free low sodium soy sauce)
optional ingredients: freshly minced dill, sun-dried tomatoes, fresh parsley, croutons 

Note: I always use organic ingredients when available, because organic means produce and seasonings aren’t genetically modified, aren't sprayed with chemicals, and aren't grown in soil that contains chemical fertilizers.


Note: No need to get overwhelmed by the long list of ingredients. All veggies can be chopped in a food processor. To keep additional prep simple, when herbs or spices mentioned above aren't in your pantry, use a substitute. Seasoning blends like 21 Seasoning Salute works well. Avoid trips to the market, and use what's in your house already. Incorporate veggies like shallots, leeks, scallions, mushrooms, red pepper, cabbage, turnip, and other varieties of squash. The more the merrier. When you add extra veggies, it makes the soup taste more full bodied and yummy. 

What to Do:

1. Soak split peas for at least 8 hours in enough water to cover by 2 inches. Use at least 6 cups of water, because spit peas will expand when soaked. Pour off liquid, pick out any grit that remains, and rinse well.

2. Cook peas in 8 cups of clean water on high until boiling. Add bay leaf, minced garlic cloves, and chopped onion. Lower heat to medium. Cook for one hour, stirring occasionally. 
3. Add the other dry spices and fresh veggies and lower to simmer. Cover and continue cooking, until peas and veggies are tender and partly mushy (anywhere from 1/2 hour to an hour). Don't forget to stir every 10 or so minutes to avoid soup from overflowing or sticking to bottom of the pot. If you decide to add additional veggies, use an extra cup of water for each veggie you include. Season accordingly. Add fresh snipped herbs a few minutes before you're ready to take the pot off the stove.
4. Remove soup pot from heat. Put on a cutting board or other heat resistant surface. Use an immersion blender or food processor to puree soup until it is blended to a consistency you like. 

In my house, we like thick yet smooth soup.

Smoky Vegan Split Pea Soup with Smoked Paprika and Basil Garnish

Serve it with gluten free flax seed crackers, or with a slice of toast with almond or peanut butter. At other times, we combine it with leftover rice, quinoa, or barley. We warm it up by pouring it directly into the soup, for a terrific one dish meal.

Enjoy the Homemade Goodness of Smoky Vegan Pea Soup, an unprocessed whole food with no additives or preservatives, no refined sugar, low sodium, and no harmful ingredients added to bulk it up. Your meal mates will be delighted by its lively taste and so will you!

I'm glad you stopped by. Before you go, please take a moment to comment and then pin, stumble, or reshare the post (with my URL link included) on social media of your choosing. Sharing is caring and I appreciate your help in spreading the word about this blog.

Here's the quote for today:

"I live on good soup, not on fine words."  Moliere

Read more at: http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/soup.html

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Cauliflower Steaks: Vegan Taste Temptation

Cauliflower Steaks: Vegan Taste Temptation

I'm always on the lookout for new ways to serve veggies. The recipe that follows is one I've recently created, after seeing a cauliflower steak recipe on Susan Viosin's blog Fat Free Vegan Kitchen

This is my original recipe, a fun way to put cauliflower, a power-packed cruciferous veggie, into family meal planning. See how easy it is to entice even the most veggie-phobic eater, by assembling this meat-free main course dish that's eye-appealing, economical, and loaded with good taste and goodness. 

*Roasted Vegan Dijon/Lemon Cauliflower Steaks Supreme *

  

Ingredients:

1 large head of organic cauliflower rinsed and prepped (see steps 1, 2, 3)

2 Tablespoons fresh squeezed organic lemon juice

3 Tablespoons Nutritional Yeast (fortified with B-12)

2 teaspoons Dijon Mustard (preferably organic)

2 cloves garlic, grated fine

salt and pepper to taste

2 T Braggs Liquid Aminos (optional Ingredient)

Sliced Organic Tomato for garnish (do not put into coating mixture)

What to Do:

1. Shop for cauliflower at your local farmers' market or green grocer. If you're a home gardener, pick cauliflower out of your home garden. Select as large a head as possible. To assure you're getting the freshest organic cauliflower available, look for a head that is creamy white, with densely packed blemish free florets. Examine the leaves closely, and if they are green instead of white, you'll get a cauliflower that is top notch. This means it will be loaded with nutrients, and tastes sweet instead of strong, as older ones tend to do.

2.Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Cut leaves off the head of  cauliflower , but keep the center core intact. Place cauliflower on a cutting board, stem side down. Slice the head in half (top to bottom), straight down the middle. On either side, make slices that are 1/2 in. thick and place them on a cookie sheet that is covered with parchment paper. 

3. Cut as many steaks as possible. You'll know when to stop when the cauliflower pieces start to crumble. Coat each steak with a mixture made from the remaining ingredients. Place slices of tomato on top of steaks and cook all together. Use loose pieces in your salad or bake them alongside the cauliflower steaks (coat loose florets with Dijon lemon mixture as well).

  

4. The crumbled pieces will take less time to bake than the steaks. Taste test everything (what fun!). When each piece is slightly browned and the cauliflower is cooked to your liking, turn off the oven. We enjoy crispy, crunchy cauliflower steaks at our house, so I cook them for 5-10 minutes on each side.  If you like your cauliflower well done, cook the dish for a longer amount of time. Loose pieces take about 10 minutes total to cook. 

5. Serving ideas are plentiful. Combine with whole grains, green or orange veggies, or a combination of those you like. 

Health Benefits of Cauliflower: "One serving of cauliflower contains 77 percent of the recommended daily value of vitamin C. It's also a good source of Vitamin K, protein, thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, magnesium, phosphorus, fiber, vitamin B6, potassium, and manganese." See more at Dr. Mercola's Website

For a super plant-based meal, one that's packed with deliciousness, make Roasted Vegan Dijon/Lemon Cauliflower Steaks Supreme. It will fill your belly and warm your heart.

Have you made any Cauliflower Steak recipes? How did they turn out? Did you know cauliflower was so nutritious? Are you willing to try out this recipe and see how it's received at your house? Please let me know what you think of my recipe. If you can, link to this post on social media to share the love.

Before I go, I'd like to tell you something personal about myself you may not know. I have been successful in breaking free from a cycle of negativity I saw modeled early on in life. In fact, I wrote and published a book to help others overcome the challenging task of letting go of deeply held beliefs and opinions about themselves and learn (practice) life skills that promote happier, healthier lives. 

Colors of Joy: A Woman’s Guide for Self-Discovery, Balance, and Bliss is a 12 week journal program that uses colors, affirmations, journal writing, and reflection to support and encourage us as we learn to love and approve of ourselves and others wholeheartedly. Pick up a copy for you and a friend. It makes an attractive gift for your BF and a special treat for you. If you are willing to enhance your life, order it right now by clicking on the link to My Website or ordering it at Amazon Books.

The quote for today follows: "Cauliflower is nothing but cabbage with a college education." Mark Twain

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