Veggie Chili & Cornbread

This past Sunday I made a meal for a family that just had a new baby (our community is great with organizing new baby meals).  Though most people tend to have their standard new baby meal for when they need to make a meal, I'm not quite there.  It would probably be easier for me to have that so I don't need to think too much, but I tend to get excited over food (in case you haven't yet noticed), so I end up making whatever I'm really in the mood for.  This week I wanted Veggie Chili and Cornbread.  I've made both before and they've been a hit with my husband and other company we've had over, so I hoped that maybe Henry would eat it too. 

I got the base for both recipes from http://www.allrecipes.com/.  But, I changed both of the recipes significantly.  I assumed that Henry would LOVE the cornbread, and I hoped that he would at least try the Veggie Chili.  The big surprise of the meal was that though Henry ate the cornbread, what he couldn't get enough of was the Veggie Chili.  Until his bowl of Veggie Chili was finished, he didn't even look at the cornbread!  And then, when we joined him at the table with our bowls of chili, he then proceeded to take bites from both of our bowls.  I guess I will have to make it again!

I apologize for the lack of pictures...we ate it too quickly :)

Vegetarian Chili (called The Best Vegetarian Chili in the World in allrecipes.com)
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 bay leaves
1 tsp cumin
2 Tbsp oregano
1/2 Tbsp salt
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 (12 oz) pkg Lightlife Smart Ground Vegetarian Meat Crumbles
3 (15 oz) cans diced tomatoes, with juice
3 Tbsp chili powder
2 Tsp ground black pepper
1/2 (15 oz) can white kidney beans (it's what I had in my fridge)
1 (15 oz) can chickpeas
1 (15 oz) can black beans
1 (15 oz) can yellow corn
1 (12 oz) bottle beer
Shredded low-fat cheddar or mozzarella cheese (optional)

1.  Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat.  Stir in onion, and season with bay leaves, cumin, oregano, and salt.  Cook and stir until onion is tender, and then throw in the garlic, and cook 2 more minutes.  Mix in the vegetarian crumbles.  Reduce heat to low, cover pot, and simmer 5 minutes.

2.  Mix the tomatoes into the pot.  Season with chili powder and pepper.  Stir in the kidney beans, chickpeas, black beans, and corn.  Pour in half the beer.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer for about 2 hours.  Monitor the pot, and as the liquid cooks down, you can add more beer (the longer you simmer, the more beer you will use).

3.  To serve top each bowl with a bit of shredded cheese if desired, and with a piece of cornbread on the side (below).


Corn-filled Cornbread (called Buttery Cornbread at allrecipes.com)
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup honey
3 eggs
1 2/3 cups 1% milk
2 1/3 cups flour
1 cup cornmeal
4 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 cup canned corn (rinsed and drained)

1.  Preheat oven to 400.

2.  In a mixing bowl, cream butter, sugar, and honey. Combine the eggs and milk. Combine flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt; add to creamed mixture alternately with egg mixture. Then stir in the canned corn.

3.  Pour into a 13x9 inch pan that has been sprayed with cooking spray.  Bake in oven for about 30 minutes, or until its cooked through.

Happy and (mostly) healthy eating!