It's Chili Season! (a little early, but still...)

Ok, it's mid-September... and in Ohio, that means really screwy weather. You know, the kind where you run the heater on the way to work/school in the morning, and the air conditioner on the way home. This is the season when you take a jacket and a t-shirt with you no matter what.

Mid-September also means one scrawny, middle-aged vegan is itching to make the season's inaugural batch of chili. Really, I try to wait until the leaves start falling and you can *shoof* through them in the yard... but it never happens that way.

This year, I have home-grown habanero and jalapeno peppers, so I was even more anxious than usual.

Now, I never make chili the same way twice... this time I opted to use soyrizo... and as much as I generally dislike meat analogues, this turned out pretty tasty. Too bad I forgot pics... but I'll get 'em tonight and update the post.

Also, I tend to favor crockpot-friendly varieties. There's nothing like coming home and having comfort food ready to eat!


Vegan Soyrizo Crockpot Chili

1 12-oz package Morningstar Farms Soyrizo, crumbled
1 40-oz jug tomato juice (alternately, I sometimes use V8 Hot & Spicy)
4 large tomatoes, chopped
1 large red onion, chopped
2-3 jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced
1 habanero pepper, seeded and finely minced (wear kitchen gloves!)
1 can dark red kidney beans, drained
1 can light kidney beans, drained
1 can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained
1 can black beans, drained
1 can sweet yellow corn, drained
2 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp cumin
1/2 tbsp turmeric

Optional for garnish:

chopped fresh cilantro
Veggie Shreds cheddar "cheese"
Tofutti vegan sour cream

Add all ingredients to a large crockpot and stir. Cook on high for 4 hours; then turn on low and cook an additional 2-3 hours. Ladle into soup bowls, garnish with cilantro, Veggie Shreds and Tofutti sour cream, and enjoy!

Note: Ok, you have probably guessed that I like my chili pretty damned hot. Really, you could probably get away without the habanero just fine... but I think it imparts a distinctive flavor in chili, if you don't mind the heat.

Let Chili Season 2008 begin!

The Garden of Evil

This year marks the first time I have tried to grow anything since I helped my dad with his garden some 20 years ago. I decided to just start out with some peppers. While the harvest is a bit light, I'm happy to say that I do have some peppers to incorporate into my recipes.

First, the cayenne peppers:

Next up, jalapenos. I let these ripen a bit longer than I intended - jalapenos turn red when fully ripe - but I've read that red jalapenos have a slightly sweeter, more complex taste than the standard green jalapenos. I'm making Mexican tonight, so we shall see:

These are Peruvian purple peppers. I chose these on a whim, and I'm really not sure what to do with them. But rest assured, I will figure something out:

Finally, the kings of evil - habanero peppers. Out of all the varieties, these seemed to do the best. Mind you, I only use one of these in a whole batch of chili, so I really don't know how I'm going to use all of them.

So there you go... my Garden of Evil. I'll be using these in recipes in the next couple of weeks (although I might dry most of the cayenne peppers and use a coffee grinder to make cayenne powder).

All hail the mighty power of capsacin!