I have been on the hunt for healthy, mum-friendly meals that can translate from lunch to dinner lately. I hope to post them here, in an effort to inspire all the fellow peanut butter and honey makers to get creative once in a while and have something packed with nutrition available in the fridge. It’s a question I get asked frequently, “How do you mix up your lunches???!” And I would tell you that I’m right there with you, although it is nice to change the pace a bit and get unstuck from the rut.

This is the time of year that gets hard. I’m completely over winter and I find myself daydreaming of bare feet, summer sangria, and fresh salads with produce from the garden, but winter is so not over with me. With these last few weeks of cold left, I decided to get out of my soup rut and make a chili I had tried at my friend’s house. It’s hard to find a filling vegetarian version, but this one takes the cake! I promise you won’t even miss the meat and the texture of the quinoa more than makes up for it. It asks for a lot of ingredients, but they are all common ones and you will find this is more of an “assembling” type recipe than anything else. Looking back, I wish I had had some avocado to put on top, because I think that would have taken it to the next level. So take it from me. Splurge and get some!

Here’s to surviving the last pieces of winter!!!!

//VEGETARIAN QUINOA CHILI

2 cups cooked quinoa 

1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 large yellow onion, diced (1 3/4 cup)

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 (14.5 oz) cans diced tomatoes

1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce

1 1/2 – 2 cups water (or chicken broth if not making vegetarian)

1 (7 oz) can diced green chiles

2 1/2 Tbsp chili powder (More or less…it had quite a kick!)

2 tsp ground cumin

2 tsp cocoa powder

1 1/2 tsp paprika

1/2 tsp granulated sugar

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper, or to taste (optional)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

2 (15 oz) cans kidney beans, drained and rinsed (I used one dark red, one light red)

1 (15 oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen corn

1/2 cup cilantro, chopped

Juice of 1 lime

Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Once oil is hot add onion and sauté until tender, about 4 minutes, adding in garlic during last 30 seconds of sautéing. Add in diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, cooked quinoa, water (start with 1 1/2 cups then add more later if desired), green chiles, chili powder, cumin, cocoa, paprika, sugar, coriander, cayenne pepper and season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring mixture just to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer, cover pot and allow to simmer 30 minutes.

Add in all beans, corn, cilantro and lime and cook until heated through. Serve warm with optional toppings and sides (cheddar, sour cream, diced avocados, saltine crackers or tortilla chips).

SOURCE: Cooking Pinterest