Vegan Three Bean Chili with Fall Veggies

Dunk some crusty bread into this big bowl of piping hot Vegan Three Bean Chili with Fall Veggies on a pleasant October night.  It’s delicious with pinto, black and kidney beans, fresh with vegetables like butternut squash, carrots, and green peppers, savory with herbs like rosemary and sage, and hearty enough to make a comfort meal of.

And with that ingredient list, I don’t really have to tell you it’s awfully healthy, do I?

Fall’s my favorite time of the year to cook. The kitchen’s perfectly comfortable, no longer too hot to bear, nor yet so cold that you just want to snuggle up on the couch. Outside the window,  the oak tree in the backyard is changing to soft fall colors. And there’s a butternut squash, one of my favorite Fall vegetables, sitting on the kitchen counter.

The Holidays are near enough to give you a warm glow, but not so close as to make you sweat.

One of my favorite foods to cook up when the weather starts to cool down is a bowl of chili. I can eat it first thing in the morning, straight from the pot, or scarf it down late at night, sitting in bed, the hot bowl warming my hands.

But the best time has to be when I sit down at the dinner table with Desi and Jay and they polish off their bowls and ask for more.

This is a versatile chili and it comes together rather easily. I love the mild sweetness and creaminess of butternut squash in this recipe, but use your favorite winter squash– there are no bad choices there. Mix up the beans too, if you wish. Cannelini beans are great in chilis, and so are chickpeas. So long as you follow the basic recipe, you’ll end up with the tastiest, most soothing meal you’ll eat in a long time.

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Vegan Three Bean Chili with Fall Veggies

A hearty, hot bowl of Three Bean Vegan Chili with Fall Vegetables, including butternut squash. Rosemary and sage make the chili smoky and savory.

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 50 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes

Servings 8 servings

Author Vaishali Honawar

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup dry kidney beans + 1/2 cup dry black beans + 1/2 cup dry pinto beans soaked overnight and cooked until very tender. Drain. (If using canned, substitute with 4 cups of canned, drained beans. You can use just one kind of bean in this recipe).
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil like avocado, coconut or olive
• 6 cloves of garlic
• 2 tsp red pepper flakes
• 2 tsp cumin seeds lightly roasted
• 1 medium red onion diced
• 2 medium carrots or 1 large diced
• 1 large green bell pepper diced
• 2 medium tomatoes finely diced
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 tbsp fresh sage sub with 1 tsp if using dry
• 1 tbsp fresh rosemary sub with 1 tsp if using dry
• 1/2 inch butternut squash cut into 1/2- cubes (about 2 cups)
• Salt and ground black pepper to taste

Instructions

1. In a mortar and pestle, or a food processor, mash together the garlic, red pepper flakes, and cumin into a coarse paste.
2. Heat the oil in a large pot or dutch oven.
3. Add the garlic-red-pepper-cumin mixture and let it sizzle, stirring lightly, about 30 seconds.
4. Add the onions, green peppers and carrots. Season with some salt and ground black pepper. Cook, stirring, about 3-4 minutes or until the onions start to soften.
5. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, and herbs. Mix everything well and cook, stirring often, until the tomatoes are mushy and very soft.
6. Add the beans and the butternut squash. Mix well. Add 2 cups of water.
7. Bring the chili to a boil, then lower the heat to a simmer, cover, and cook 40 minutes. Check the chili every few minutes and give it a mix. If the mixture gets too dry, add more water, 1/2 cup at a time.
8. Check salt and add more if needed. Garnish, if desired, with more rosemary and sage. Serve hot.