Healthy Homemade Chili Recipe [Vegan, Easy]

Hey, friends!

It is summertime, but that doesn’t mean one can’t indulge in some savory and grounding chili. The other night, Aaron (my boyfriend) and I were chatting when all of a sudden, I declared: “You know, chili sounds darn good.” He agreed, so we made a plan.

A few days later, all ingredients had been gathered and I got to work modifying an original recipe from Cookie and Kate. And… voila!

Normally, I try to add flowers to all of my food recipe pictures, but the fruit we procured from nearby markets did a grand ol’ job adding color to the images.

And yes, the chili is as tasty as it looks.

In addition to surprising people with scrumptious baked goods, I love creating hearty recipes such as this one because it’s hard for a lot of people to give up meat. This is due to a few factors. The first one is that when animals are slaughtered, a lot of adrenaline courses through their veins which is later ingested by those who eat them. Therefore, when people eat meat, they feel “perked up,” but it’s actually just extra adrenaline which taxes the adrenals and doesn’t help one’s body truly thrive.

A second cause is because meat is traditionally a very grounding food and in today’s world, humans tend to focus most of their energy at the base chakras (security, money, sex, etc…). Plant-based foods, on the other hand, can still offer grounding qualities but provide a plethora of minerals and vitamins which contribute to the healing process in one’s body and help sustain natural energy.

I never want to be the person who pushes vegetarianism or veganism on others (as food is a very complicated issue, often times tied to emotions), but I do want to educate others about the benefits of adopting plant-based diets — and what better way to do that then provide them with high-vibe cuisine that leaves them feeling great!?

If you’re interested in learning more or would like to adopt a plant-based diet, I encourage you to check out my Bloom for Life cookbook which, for a temporary period of time, is <a href="http://bloomforlife.org/cookbook_bfl/"on sale for just $14.99 (eBook version).

Now, for the chili recipe…

I put this together in under 20 minutes and combined, it tasted delicious. I hope you enjoy!

Healthy Homemade Chili Recipe [Vegan, Easy]
Preparation Time: 20 Minutes

Serving Size: 8-10

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium red onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic, pressed or minced

2 tablespoons chili powder

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 ½ teaspoons smoked paprika

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 large red bell pepper, chopped

2 medium carrots, chopped

2 ribs celery, chopped

1 large can (28 ounces) or 2 small cans (15 ounces each) diced tomatoes*, with their juices

2 cans (15 ounces each) black beans, rinsed and drained

1 can (15 ounces) pinto beans, rinsed and drained

2 cups vegetable broth or water

1 bay leaf

2 tablespoons nutritional yeast (optional)

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro, plus more for garnishing

1 to 2 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar, to taste

Garnishes: avocado, chopped cilantro or sour cream

Directions:

In a large pot, warm the olive oil until shimmering. Add your diced onion and minced garlic and cook until onions are translucent.
Next, add your spices (chili pepper, oregano, cumin, paprika) to the mixture and let sizzle for 1-2 minutes. Then, add the carrots, celery, and bell pepper with a dash of water. Let cook until vegetables are tender — about 7-10 minutes. (If needed, add more water but subtract amount from 2 cups of water)
Add the diced tomatoes and their juices, the drained black beans and pinto beans, vegetable broth, nutritional yeast and bay leaf. Stir to combine and let the mixture come to a simmer. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally and reducing heat as necessary to maintain a gentle simmer, for 30 minutes. Remove the chili from heat.
For the best texture and flavor, transfer 2 cups of the chili to a blender and blend until smooth. Alternatively, you may blend the chili briefly with an immersion blender.
Add the chopped cilantro, stir to blend, and then mix in the vinegar and nutritional yeast, to taste. Add salt to taste.
Let cool, then divide the chili among individual bowls and serve with garnishes of your choice. I served this chili with fruit and “Veggie Chips” which are easily found at most grocery stores.
Store the chili in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.

And there ya go!