I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! Craig, Archer and I had a fun and memorable time at my mom’s house this year. We didn’t have water for a while, which complicated things, but then everything came together perfectly. It was also a great opportunity to spend some time with the newest member of the Reppucci family: Ozzy! My mom adopted him last week from a rescue in Connecticuit and he is a blast. He got A LOT of attention at Thanksgiving. I think Archer might be jealous…
Ozzy and Archer
Anyway, did anyone else eat too much this weekend? I certainly did. So now it’s time for inter-holiday detox. Some healthy meals and lots of veggies before I start OD-ing on wine, chocolate and Christmas cookies in a few weeks.
I made this healthy vegan chili because it’s filling and super healthy. Packed with healthy fiber and filling protein, it’s a great way to enjoy a comforting winter meal without adding a ton of fat, calories and sodium. As far as my recipes go, this one is fairly mild in the heat department. You can spice it up by adding more chili powder or cayenne, or top it with your favorite hot sauce, as we did.
The recipe makes ample leftovers, which I’ve been bringing for lunch. A big 1 cup serving has only 183 calories, making it perfect for a healthy lunch or a hearty dinner. You can top this with some shredded cheese, diced avocado or serve with tortilla chips.
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 3 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 red bell pepper, washed and diced
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1.5 cups dried black beans, soaked
- 4 cups low sodium vegetable broth
- 2.5 cups tomato puree or crushed tomatoes
- 1lb sweet potatoes, washed and chopped into ½” chunks
- 1 cup dry bulgur
- 1 cup water
- 2 tbsp lime juice (1/2 lime)
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp cumin
- optional: ¼ fresh cilantro, washed and chopped (substitute 1 tbsp dried)
- In a small saucepan, add soaked beans and 3 cups of water. Simmer on med-low heat for 20 minutes while you prep the rest of the ingredients.
- In a large pot, brown onions, garlic and red pepper in olive oil on medium heat for 4-5 minutes.
- Add beans, tomatoes and broth. Cover and bring to a boil
- Reduce heat to low and simmer for 15-20 minutes, until beans are softened
- Add sweet potatoes, bulgur, water, ½ of cilantro, spice and lime juice
- Simmer, covered on med-low heat for 20-25 minutes, until sweet potatoes are fork tender and beans are softened
- Garnish with the remaining cilantro and serve hot with tortilla chips
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i could definitely use something like this after all the thanksgiving festivities – sounds so delicious! and oh my gosh archer and ozzy are adorable!! soooo cute!
This is exactly the type of food I’m trying to eat this week. Definitely too much food and drink last week! (And Ozzy is adorable!)
This looks really yummy! I never would have thought to add sweet potato, but I’ll bet that mild sweetness really makes the dish!
This sounds so good! I am totally in detox mode right now now too. I hope I can make it last until Christmas.
I can’t even begin to tell you how much I love this dish! One of my favorite meals is a black bean chili served over baked sweet potatoes; however, putting the sweet potatoes in the chili would definitely make the process SO much easier. Interesting addition of the bulgur to give it some meatiness. Love this!
Ozzy is so cute! My kids (and I) would be jealous. We want a puppy/dog but with traveling and no family around, we cannot have a pet… One day! Love your chili. Perfect for cold weather. Sweet potatoes are always my favorite!
Mmmmm it may be hot but I still want this deliciousness
Cheers
CCU
Mmmm….this looks so healthy, filling and delicious! Perfect for the detox period between Thanksgiving and Christmas!
I can’t wait to try this on the weekend. Love the idea of the bulgur and sweet potatoes. Nobody will miss the meat!
haha aww Ozzy is too cute! I’m definitely trying your chili for dinner tomorrow night! I’ve been trying to fill up on as many healthy meals too before the holidays really kick in
I love spicy sweet potatoes and haven’t seen it in a chili like this, looks really good Dara! Will let you know how it goes 
I was checking the ingredients and recipe before shopping and I noticed that in step 5 you say to add 1/2 the cilantro. Sorry, what cilantro? It’s not listed in the ingredients. (Thanks for adding the canned beans substitution.)
Hi Bentley! Thanks for the catch. I added it to the list of ingredients. The cilantro is optional, but I think it gives the dish an added kick.
This sounds great, I like that it’s so colourful. Great alternative to the usual chilli.
I’m not finding a “print recipe” option. How can I do this? Love the photos but don’t need them.
I’m not finding a “print recipe” option. Am I missing something? If not, how can I print only the recipe?
Hi Joyce. I will look into this and get it fixed. Sometimes the recipe plug in gets a little wonky.