Total Time: 50 minutes Serves: 5
Recipe By: Brittany Wood Nickerson
A big, hearty dish that is simple to make and satisfying to eat, chili allows you to feed a crowd or to store away some leftovers for the week. It handily accommodates any other frozen vegetables you might have stored away–corn, peppers, green beans, and greens all make great additions. A bowl of steaming hot chili is great winter medicine–all its pungent spices stimulate immunity, increase circulation, and warm you up!
Ingredients:
- 1 can black beans (or cook 1/2 cup dry)
- 2 TBSP olive oil or ghee
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 1 jalapeno, seeded and finely chopped
- 3-4 garlic cloves
- 2 TBSP fresh oregano
- 1 TBSP chili powder
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 pound ground beef or pork
- salt to taste
- 1 large sweet potato, cut 1/2 inch
- 2 cups diced tomatoes (fresh or canned)
- 1 TBSP unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 – 1 1/2 cups broth
- 2 cups packed spinach leaves
- cilantro and sour cream, for garnish
Directions:
1. Warm the oil in a pot over medium heat. Add the onion and saute until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the jalapeno, garlic, oregano, bay leaf, and all the dry spices and cook stirring continuously until fragrant, about 1 minute.
2. Add the beef, season generously with salt, and cook, stirring to break it up into bite-size pieces, until the meat is mostly cooked through, 5-7 minutes. Add the beans, sweet potato, tomatoes, cocoa powder, and enough broth to cover everything by an inch. Simmer gently until the sweet potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes.
3. Add the spinach and simmer until it is wilted but still bright green, about 3 minutes. Season to taste with salt. Serve in bowls, garnished with fresh cilantro and sour cream, if desired.