Sometimes after a long day, the best kind of dinner is the one where you just throw a bunch of stuff into a pot. You use up some of those vegetables that you forgot you had, pop open some beans, throw in some canned tomatoes, and not only do you have a delicious dinner, but you have some marvelous, healthy, delicious, leftovers for the week. (LEFTOVERS ARE THE BEST)

I have received several compliments regarding this chili, including the following:

"Can you make me a pot of that chili for the week?" - Meat eating fellow friend who had no idea this chili was meatless but loved it anyways and who we owed a major favor to for rides to a concert after our cab was a no show.
My husband's office had a chili cookout, I didn't have time to make anything mostly because we both kept forgetting about it. His buddy asked, 'Is Corrie going to make the sweet potato black bean chili?' and was utterly disappointed when he found out I wasn't, well 'utterly' might be a stretch... Luckily I had just made some that week so Chris brought him some and he was happy. Thanks for boosting my ego Bill!!!

This is the fourth item in The Grateful Plate series, which I started as a way to say thank you to all of you who donated to Lainee's gofundme account. Since we don't live in the same city, state, or even country as many of you, I thought posting these recipes was the next best thing! I would probably serve this for dinner along with a couple of sides which I will be posting soon, one of the sides is rosemary thyme cornbread muffins!

This is a fun dish to serve because everyone can fix it up to their own desires! I like to put roasted nuts on almost everything these days, specifically hazelnuts or pistachios, so I definitely recommend that along with some avocado slices.

If you have been contemplating participation in 'Meatless Monday', this would be a GREAT recipe to start off with, especially if you are feeding your family! Either way, take a pic, post it on Instagram and use #itsallofit and tag me so I can see your delicious creation!

Sweet Potato Black Bean Chili

Recipe Author: Corrie L. Anderson

Recipe Type: Entrée

Cuisine: Vegetarian

Serves: 6-7

Printable Recipe

INGREDIENTS:

3 tablespoons olive oil
2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 to 2 cans of black beans, rinsed
1 ½ cup cooked quinoa
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 red onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
3 stalks of celery, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1-tablespoon chili powder
1-tablespoon cumin
1-tablespoon coriander
1-tablespoon oregano, rosemary, thyme (preferably fresh, but dried is fine!)
1 - 6 ounce can tomato paste
1 - 28 ounce can of crushed or diced tomatoes
4 cups of vegetable broth
2 bay leaves
Kosher salt and fresh pepper to taste

OPTIONAL: Roasted hazelnuts, pistachios, corn bread crumbles, shredded cheese, avocado slices, tortilla strips

INSTRUCTIONS:

In a large pot, heat up olive oil over medium high heat. Sauté onions until they are almost translucent. Add celery, garlic, and pepper, cook for 2 minutes. Add sweet potato cubes and cook stirring frequently for about 5-10 minutes or until the sweet potato starts to get soft.
Next add the tomato paste and stir until it is well incorporated and then add the crushed/diced tomatoes and do the same.
Add black beans, 4 cups of vegetable broth, 1 ½ cup quinoa, and 2 bay leaves. Cover the pot and cook for about 20 to 30 minutes, or until it tastes just right to you!

Serving Size: 1 Calories: 350 Fat: 9 g Saturated Fat: 2 g Carbohydrates: 58 g Sugar: 9 g Sodium: 835 mg Fiber: 11 g Protein: 12 g