Monday, September 12, 2011

Paleo Pumpkin Chili

The past week I have been scouring cookbooks and websites for Chili recipes. We take chili VERY seriously in my house. My Mumsie makes the best chili ever. The prospect of making a chili without beans or corn was a bit daunting. 

I decided to glean from a myriad of recipes, adding things I liked and subtracting ingredients that either sounded intolerable or were not "paleo friendly." In the end I was very satisfied with the outcome. 

This is a very tomato-ey (yes, I completely made up this word). I, however, LOVE tomatoes, so this was a win. Plus, this recipe was easily made in the crockpot--double win!


Ingredients

1 lb ground beef (you could easily sub in bison/turkey/chicken/soy crumbles)
1 large onion (diced)
2 tbsp. coconut oil
3 cloves of garlic (minced)
2 (28 oz) cans crushed tomatoes (use only 1 if you prefer less tomato-ey taste)
1 (4 oz) can tomato juice
1 can tomato paste
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1 1/2 tbsp. chili powder
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp thyme
2 tsp. sugar/honey/agave (optional, but it helps cut the acidity)
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (if you do not like spicy, omit this)
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (again, if you do not like spicy, omit this)
1 zucchini (diced finely)
1 sweet potato (peeled, and diced)
1 (15 oz) can pumpkin


1) Saute minced garlic in 1 tbsp. coconut oil and add ground beef. Cook over medium heat, until browned; saute onions, if desired (you can simply add raw onion to crockpot)

2) Add wet ingredients to crockpot

3) Stir in spices





4) Cook for 3 hours on low and then add sweet potato, zucchini, and pumpkin.





(I liked the sweet potato and zucchini to be a bit firm in my chili, if you want them soft, add them at the beginning). The pumpkin can be added at any time.

5) Cook for 2 more hours on low

6) ENJOY!



Chase is a chili connoisseur and he loved this, so that is definitely a promising endorsement. 

Do you like chili? Are you a fan of chili con carne, Chili with beans, or Cincinnati chili (sweet chili over spaghetti)?

6 comments:

  1. I just finished up my batch of pumpkin chili! It made for awesome leftovers and really quick dinners. Your recipe sounds so good!

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  2. Day by day, I'm coming to the Paleo Side! That chili was so good ... I think I'll go have some now.

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  3. My mom makes the best chili too!!! It is sweet chili though! .....However, my spicy chili can rock the socks off of my husband! :) I like the pumpkin & sweet potato add in! Mmm! Bulk it up with vieggies. That is my kind of meal!

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  4. BLECH! Even though I live in Cincinnati, I am a Cincinnati chili HATER for a few reasons. 1) I don't eat meat, so I can never try Skyline or Goldstar. 2) Coming from Michigan, chili is meant to be thick, meaty (or in my case turkey meat), hearty, and bean-ey (I make up words too :)) 3) What is up with the cinnamon sweet-ness in Cincinnati chili? Makes me sick.

    I am going to have to try this though...is the pumpkin really noticeable?

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  5. I love chili! I also love trying new chili recipes! :) Thanks for sharing this one. I have never heard of pumpkin and sweet potato in chili so I will have to give this a go.

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  6. What a great idea: adding zucchini, pumpkin and sweet potato. I, too, love chili especially now when I can feel fall in the air. Thanks for posting!

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