Crock Pot Veggie Chili

Temperatures are dropping quickly and it’s only going to get colder out. Days are shorter and squeezing in your morning workout is getting tougher and tougher. I’m all about simplifying and making things easy. When you come home late from work hungry and tired, the last thing you want to do is cook, right? Ordering in, eggs and toast or even a frozen dinner all sound tempting. Like many people out there, you may have a crock pot sitting in the back of your closet collecting dust. Take it out! It’s an amazing tool to make hearty stews and soups that will be ready when you come home from work. Just turn it on before you head out the door in the morning and come home to a delicious home-cooked meal.For the busy bee who’s looking to eat healthy it’s the perfect appliance. But most crock pot recipes are meat-heavy or loaded with saturated fats. I wanted to show you how to make a healthy crock pot meal that will take no time and leave you feeling great. I love this chili recipe because it can be eaten all week. But if you’re like me and like to change it up you can freeze portions in the freezer once it’s cooked.

In a container or even ziplock (once it’s cooled of course) measure out a serving or two then place in the freezer. Take it out that morning and when you come home and – voila! – you have homemade chili. I like to add brown rice or avocado to make this a complete meal. Feel free to change up the beans and use whatever beans you like. I always make sure to buy organic beans – they will have a lot less sodium then conventional beans. Low sodium vegetable stock/broth gives this chili lots of flavor with not a lot of additives. To spice things up add some hot sauce to the mix. I always recommend waiting until the chili is cooked to add additional seasonings this way you can try it and see what it needs.Recipe:

• 3 cups organic low sodium vegetable stock
• 3 cups sweet potato, peeled and cubed
• 1 (15 oz) can organic black beans, rinse and drained
• 2 (15 oz) cans white beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 (6 oz) can tomato paste
• 2 cups mushroom chopped
• 2 onions chopped
• 1 cup celery chopped
• 5 spring thyme
• 3 cloves minced garlic
• salt to taste
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon chili powder

Directions:

1. In your crock pot add all the above ingredients (besides salt). Set crock pot to low and cook for 6 hours or high and cook for 4 hours. No need to mix or stir!
2. Once it is done cooking take out the thyme springs, taste and add salt/additional seasonings. Serve with brown rice and top with avocado and enjoy.