Vegetarian Chili

Now, if you are one of those folks who doesn't think chili is made right if it contains beans, you probably shouldn't be attempting vegetarian chili anyway, and this recipe might not be for you. However, I found it on vegweb.com years ago, and it was similar to a recipe in a cookbook my parents had when I was in high school. It's fantastic.

I made it for a friend's chili-themed birthday party. After all the guests had gone, it was late, and the chili dishes, including the meat chilis, were left out overnight. Guess which one they caught his roommate's cats eating? That's right, this one. Not the meat.

You need:

3 tablespoons olive oil
3 chopped onions
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 bell peppers, chopped [red, yellow, orange, or green, your choice]
3 garlic cloves, chopped
3 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
1 large can, undrained, of tomatoes, chopped
1 cup water
1 can red kidney beans, rinsed & drained
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
2 cups fresh or frozen corn [you can also used frozen chopped green beans, thawed, which sounds odd, but it adds some similar freshness to the dish]
1/2 cup bulgur [AKA bulghur wheat, often available in bulk foods areas, though you can buy it packaged, too, possibly near the rice or dried beans]
salt and pepper

Construction:

• In a large pan, saute the onions and spices.
  
• Add peppers and garlic for 1 min.
  
• Add cocoa, tomatoes, and water; bring to a boil.
  
• Add kidney and black beans, corn and bulgur.
  
• Reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered, for 15 min. or until bulghur is cooked.
  
• Add salt and pepper to taste.

Like any chili recipe, this can benefit from being stored in the fridge overnight, to let the flavors mingle, then reheated the next day. I recommend serving with semi-homemade cornbread.

Black Eyed Peas and Stewed Tomatoes

This is similar to a recipe my uncle used to make back in Virginia, but without the bacon. These bring good luck for the new year.

Ingredients:

1/2 bag cooked dried black eyed peas (or 1 box frozen), cooked
1 can stewed tomatoes
1 tbsp. each dried celery leaves and parsley or 1 sm. bunch fresh minced
Salt & pepper to taste
A few dashes Tabasco sauce
1 tbsp. dried onion or 1 onion, minced
1 green pepper, minced, fresh or frozen

Instructions:

• Cook and drain the peas according to package directions.
• Add the rest of the ingredients.
• Simmer for at least 20 minutes, or place in crock pot on Low 3 to 4 hours.
• Add extra stewed tomatoes if you're going to leave it in the crock for longer.
• To substitute for bacon, add some Liquid Smoke

Red Bean and Tomato Curry

This is mostly what my mother calls a "dump" recipe (as in you dump cans of stuff into a pan), but it's yummy.  I got it from Classic Home Cooking

I made a few small modifications

Ingredients:

2 tbsp. vegetable oil (They call for corn or sunflower oil, I sometimes use olive oil instead)

1 large onion, sliced 

5 garlic cloves, crushed

1-2 fresh green chilies, cored, seeded, and sliced (I used jalapenos, but you could use serranos, if you like pain)

1 inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and chopped

1 tsp curry powder

1 tsp turmeric

1/2 tsp ground coriander

pinch of cayenne

salt (to taste)

13 oz. can of chopped tomatoes

20 oz. can of red kidney beans (drained)

1 tbsp lemon juice

(They suggest fresh cilantro leaves to garnish.  I've never done this.  Instead, for a pop of green color, I add some frozen peas.)

The Plan:

1. Heat the oil in a large skillet, add the onion, garlic, chilies, and ginger, and cook, stirring occasionally, for a few minutes, until all the aromas are released and the onion is softened but not browned.
2. Add the curry powder, turmeric, ground coriander, cayenne pepper, and salt to taste, and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes.
3. Add the tomatoes with most of their juice and cook for about three minutes.  Add the beans and cook for 5 minutes longer (This is when I add the frozen peas.) or until the beans are warmed through and the sauce is thickened.  Add the lemon juice and serve hot, garnished with cilantro leaves (or not, really).

I also serve this over couscous, since making perfect rice like an Indian restaurant is beyond my grasp.  You can also substitute chickpeas for half of the kidney beans.

Black Bean Quesadillas with Pico

These are a quick, easy recipe I came up with to use up pantry ingredients and add some freshness.

For quesadillas, you'll need:

1 can of black beans with jalapenos added (or one can plain black beans, and a jar of pickled jalapenos)

1 package of shredded cheese, preferably a Mexican blend

1 tsp. or two of cumin 

Salt and pepper

1-2 tablespoons of olive oil

1 package small whole wheat tortillas (in this case, I don't recommend the freshly made ones, since they puff up a lot)

For the Pico, you'll need:

1-2 fresh tomatoes (in the off-season, I like the tomatoes on the vine)

1 red onion

1 bunch cilantro (you won't use all of it)

1 fresh lime or some bottled lime juice

Salt and pepper

The plan:

• Drain the beans and add them to a sauce pot
• If they don't contain jalapenos already, add the desired amount from your jar of pickled peppers
• Begin to heat the beans, then add cumin and salt and pepper to taste
• Cook over medium heat and let it cook down a little
• Set it aside, since this tends to thicken as it cools

Next:

• Chop a tomato or two up into half-inch bites and place in a bowl
• Chop half of the red onion into roughly the same size as the tomatoes, and add to the bowl.  If the onion is small, you can chop up some of the rest of the onion as you wish.
• Chop up cilantro to taste.  I would go for at least a tablespoon or two, but I know it's an acquired taste.  Rough chop is fine.  Add to the bowl as well.
• Add a gentle amount of salt and pepper, then add the juice of one lime and toss.
• Let it sit.  You can actually make this the day before.

Finishing up:

• Heat up the olive oil in a medium non-stick pan
• Add one tortilla, and sprinkle cheese on top.  I like a fair amount, but keep in mind that there will be cheese on the other side, too.
• Add a generous dollop of beans over the cheese and spread them out.
• More cheese on top of the beans, then add another tortilla.
• Keep an eye on the bottom tortilla, when it starts to get crispy and brown, use two spatulas to flip the whole thing over
• Once the second tortilla is browned on the bottom, slide the whole thing to a plate
• You should be able to make two-three servings.  
• Once done with the tortilla assembly and cooking, toss the pico again and taste it.  Adjust seasonings as needed.
• Put a generous scoop of pico de gallo on top of each quesadilla.  You can garnish with sour cream if you need additional "stuff" but frankly I think it's fine without.

Enjoy!