4 Bean Chili

I woke up this morning to a 2 hour delay for school/work due to freezing rain!  I think that means this is a perfect morning to post a recipe for this delicious, warm chili I made last week.  This chili is full of protein, vegetables, and taste.  The seasonings in this chili were amazing!  This chili is also another easy meal.  Just toss everything into a crockpot (which requires very little chopping) and let it work its magic.

This recipe was adapted from Daily Garnish:

Ingredients:

• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 10oz bag of frozen mixed bell pepper strips, chopped
• 1 15oz can black beans
• 1 15oz can red kidney beans
• 1 15oz can great northern beans
• 1 15oz can white kidney beans
• 2 15oz can fire roasted tomatoes
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder
• 1.5 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• sea salt, to taste

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients in a crockpot.
2. Cook on high for about 4 hours or low for about 8 hours or until ready to serve.

Since my mom is not a fan of really spicy food, I kept the spice level down.  However, feel free to add more spice if you like a spicier meal.  I thought the cinnamon helped give this chili the perfect sweet & spicy flavor though.

Also, feel free to switch up the kinds of beans you use.  You can use chickpeas, lentils, cannellini, adzuki, etc.  Or if you want a "meatier" chili, try adding about 1/2-1 cup dried TVP to the crockpot, but you will probably need to add at least another 1/2-1 cup of liquid.  (I haven't tried adding TVP yet so I can't vouch for the results of the chili with this version.)

This was so easy and tasty and made plenty so that I had leftovers for lunch the next day!  I cannot wait to make this delicious meal again!

I am roughly estimating that this chili makes 8 hearty bowls.
One serving yields approximately 213 calories and 12g protein.