Gluten Free Recipe: Three Bean Vegetarian Chili

I walked out of my yoga class, feeling pretty blissed out. I sent a quick text message to my husband telling him I'd be home in 10 minutes. Several minutes later, I received a text message. At the next traffic light, I took a quick look/see. Here's what it said: "Cool. Great chili btw!". Score:). And one of the best parts: early this morning, I made the chili, threw it in the crockpot, and left for about six hours. How easy was that?!




When I meal plan for the week, I can always count on spending less money at the grocery store, throwing out less food (that hadn't really been planned for), and eating out less. Last night, I sat down and planned our meals for the rest of this week, with inspiration in large part from Diane Eblin's 30 Days To A Food Revolution event. Diane, whose blog is called The W.H.O.L.E. Gang, put a huge amount of work into creating an event that turned out to be an eye-opening experience for me, and as I said, was partially responsible for tonight's Three Bean Vegetarian Chili. Not only was my participation in the event enlightening for me, but I was honored to be among the other 29 bloggers who contributed their voices and stories and recipes to the event. I learned so much, just by reading all the posts. Two of the very valuable lessons I was reminded of (among many) include the importance of planning ahead and choosing meals that are quick and easy (like Kickin' Kidney Bean Burgers or Karina's Veggie Loaf), especially for days when you don't really have time to do much cooking. With that in mind, I sat down last night and planned my weekly menu. Tonight's dinner would be Vegetarian Chili. Normally, I'd soak dried beans overnight, but for this chili recipe, canned beans were the way to go. You see, part of my meal planning includes taking a look at my schedule and determining how much time I have in the kitchen for cooking. I knew I'd be away most of today and would have just enough time to make the chili and throw it in the crockpot before leaving for the day. The result: dinner this evening, definitely tomorrow night's dinner AND the rest will be frozen in meal-size portions.



Daiya has arrived and I am SO EXCITED!!! It has become a staple in my kitchen. Whoever created it is a genius. It makes gluten-free, dairy-free, and soy-free (though I don't have a problem with soy) living a cinch. The damn stuff melts, I mean REALLY MELTS!!!! And I can buy it at my local small health food store. The cheddar Daiya tastes like cheddar. The mozzarella tastes like mozzarella and you should see the pizza made with it. Unbelievable, that's all I can say!




Three Bean Vegetarian Chili



1 tbsp olive oil
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and diced
8 oz. button mushrooms, sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 tbsp tomato paste
1 - 2 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp dried oregano
2 tsp chipotle chili powder, optional
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tbsp ground cumin
One 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes
One 15.5 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
One 15.5 oz can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
One 15.5 oz can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 1/2 cups water
1 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

One package Trader Joe's Soy Chorizo, removed from casing and sauteed (this ingredient is optional but highly recommended as it provides a hearty texture to the chili)
One package Daiya Cheddar Style Shreds

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, bell pepper, and garlic. Cook for about 5 minutes, or until softened. Add the tomato paste, chili powder, oregano, chipotle chili powder, cinnamon, and cumin. Mix well and cook for another minute.

Pour the mixture into a 6-quart crockpot. Add the crushed tomatoes, beans, water, salt and pepper, and chorizo. Cover the crockpot and cook on low for 4 - 6 hours.

Serve with a handful of Daiya. If it doesn't melt, put the bowl (with the cheese) into the microwave and heat on high for about 20 - 30 seconds until melted.

So, what's on your menu for this week?

This recipe is included in The Gluten-Free Homemaker's Gluten-Free Wednesdays weekly.

Gluten Free Breakfast Recipe - Vegan Fruit Crumble

One of the hardest things about being diagnosed with Celiac and having to go gluten-free had everything to do with breakfast. I mean, I was a creature of habit – if you gave me a New York-style water boiled bagel with a smear of cream cheese, I was a happy girl. Of course, I would ALWAYS have a stomachache after eating my beloved bagel and I would always blame myself for eating too much. This went on my friends, for years. Little did I know that it had nothing to do with quantity and everything to do with gluten.

Oh well, those days are gone. I still have a bagel now and then, always gluten-free and almost always homemade (by me). The cream cheese is another story. I can still eat the gummy white stuff if I want to, but the repercussions are rarely worth it.

So, where am I going with this? I’m heading straight for thinking outside of the bagel box. For the last 4 1/2 years, I’ve been exploring other breakfast possibilities, including pancakes, and waffles, and hot cereal, and scrambled tofu, and yes, the occasional homemade bagel. But lately, I’ve been obsessed with my Fruit Crumble, inspired by Sweetly Raw, a blog that I’ve just become acquainted with. Heather, of Sweetly Raw, posted about her Mango Berry Crumble, and it might as well have had my name in the subtitle. You see, in the past few years, when I’ve felt ambitious, I would take the time to make Muesli. But it always involves lots of cutting and chopping before the spoon goes into my mouth. And I’m not always in the mood. My iteration of Heather’s Mango Berry Crumble is a simpler version of my Muesli. And so, I couldn’t be happier.

What I’ve been doing is making the crumble mixture and sticking it in the frig. And then on the mornings when I’m in the mood, I just throw some fruit in a bowl, top it with the crumble, and pour some homemade almond milk over the whole shebang and I’m in heaven. Total heaven, I tell you.

Heather, we don’t know each other, but thank you!!!! Not only for the recipe but for the template. I bet you could easily add or substitute other nuts or dried fruits. For example, the original recipe didn’t include pistachios, but they marry beautifully with dates, so it was natural for me to include them.

One more thing this concoction is equally delicious without the almond milk and would make a great, light dessert.

Breakfast Fruit Crumble


1 cup walnuts
1/4 cup pistachios
1/2 cup pitted dates
1/2 cup shredded, unsweetened coconut
1/3 cup rolled oats (be sure they’re gluten-free)
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
Bowl of fruit
Almond milk (or milk of choice)

Throw all the crumble ingredients (walnuts through vanilla) into your food processor. Combine until the mixture is crumbly. Spoon over a bowl of the fruit of your choice (this morning I used blueberries, strawberries, and mango), add almond milk.