Cosy Chili Dinner

A Readers’ Recipe Contest in Alive magazine declared the following recipe the winner. It was submitted by Eliza Leahy. I’m transcribing it here and I hope she doesn’t mind. I’ve made it lots of times and it’s really yummy. And you don’t miss the meat at all. I use Mexican-flavoured ground tofu and I make a double batch each time in my big stock pot. It says "Serves 4" for one batch but I get about 10 lunches out of it… if I’m not being too greedy!

Tonight, the dining-room table was covered with cake-in-progress, so we ate at the coffee table with guacamole, sour cream and grated cheddar in small bowls. Also a big bowl of tortilla chips. And Corona beer. A very fun and cosy dinner.



Hearty Veggie Chili

1 tbsp butter
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed or finely chopped
1 tbsp chili powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp oegano, dried
1 jalapeño pepper, finely copped
1 tsp basil, dried
2 carrots, diced
2 celery stalks, sliced
1 green pepper, chopped
28 oz. can of diced plum tomatoes with juice
12 oz. package of seasoned ground tofu
19 oz. can of red kidney beans, drained and rinsed.

Over medium heat sauté butter and onion until onions are clear. Add the garlic, chili powder, cumin, oregano, jalapeno, and basil. Sauté for 1 minute, stirring to mix. Add carrots, celery, and green pepper and sauté for a few minutes to soften. Stir in remaining ingredients (tomatoes, ground tofu, and beans) and bring almost to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for at least 1 hour. The longer it simmers, the better. Adjust spices to taste. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan or cheddar cheese and serve with crusty bread (garlic bread is good, too).

Serves 4.