This is the perfect fall meal – it’s a shame it’s still 100 here, but it’s October 27, and I’m making it anyway.  Perhaps if I will it fall, it will come?  I’ll wear a sweater tomorrow.  That should help. You can’t really taste the pumpkin, but it makes the chili a great consistency – and is packed with healthy vitamins!

Ingredients:

• 1 pound of dried black beans, rinsed and soaked according to package directions
• 1 TB olive oil (I used a jalapeno infused one – largely because I have 12 different infused olive oils, but sadly, keep forgetting to buy the plain kind.)
• 1 shallot, diced
• 1 onion diced
• 2 tsp of minced garlic
• 2 yellow and/or orange bell peppers, or 5 to 7 mini peppers, chopped
• 1 jalapeno, seeds, stems and membranes removed, diced (optional – but if you remove the seeds and membranes, it adds some flavor without too much heat)
• 1 can of pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling!)
• 1 can or bottle of the beer of your choice
• 1 28 oz or 2 14.5 or 15 oz can of diced tomatoes, undrained
• 4 cups of broth (chicken, or vegetable, for a vegetarian chili)
• 1 TB chili powder
• 2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves
• 2 TB brown sugar
• Salt and pepper

Preparation:

Heat olive oil in dutch oven on stove over medium high heat.

Saute garlic, onion and shallot for 2-3 minutes, until softened.

Add jalapenos and bell peppers or mini peppers, saute 2 minutes.

Add remainder of ingredients, stir well.

Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer for one hour, stirring occasionally.

After one hour, remove lid and continue to simmer uncovered for 35-50 minutes, or until beans are cooked, stirring occasionally.

Serving suggestions:

Like all chili, I like to offer a bunch of toppings – for some reason, that level of control seems to make the kids eat more.  We do shredded cheddar, sour cream or greek yogurt, green onions and salsa.  We also usually have this with cornbread.

This makes 6 generous servings.