One of my favorite food blogs is Heidi Swanson’s 101 Cookbooks. She recently posted a recipe for a vegetarian chili that she was very enthusiastic about, that she called Pierce Street Vegetarian Chili. Here’s my take on it.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large yellow onion, chopped
2 shallots, chopped
8 small/med garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tablespoon ginger, peeled and grated
3 tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 serrano pepper, seeded and finely chopped
1 chipotle pepper (from can or rehydrate), minced
1 28-ounce can of crushed tomatoes
10 cups vegetable broth
1 1/2 cups cooked chickpeas (canned is fine)
2 1/4 cups black, brown, and/or green lentils, rinsed and picked over
2/3 cup pearled barley or pearled farro
2/3 cup bulgur wheat
1 teaspoon fine grain sea salt (or to taste)

Instructions:

In a large stockpot pot over medium heat add the olive oil, onion, and shallots. When the onions soften up and get a bit translucent, add the garlic, ginger, chili powder and cumin. Stir well and cook for a minute of so, until everything gets quite fragrant. Stir in the serrano pepper and chipotle pepper, tomatoes, and 8 cups of the broth. Now add the chickpeas, lentils, barley/farro, and bulgur – stirring between each addition. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer. Take a taste of the broth a few minutes into the simmer – you can make adjustments for salt here – if you’re using water in place of broth, you can add a teaspoon of salt for starters and add more later if needed. Simmer away for about 35- 45 minutes or until the lentils and grains are cooked through. You will likely need to add the rest of the water, a cup at a time, if the chili thickens up too much. Before serving do your final adjustments – add more chipotle, salt, or whatever you think it needs and enjoy!

This makes a huge pot of chili. Would serve 12 (at least).

Notes:

We topped it with some crumbled queso fresco and a drizzle of olive oil, but you could top it any number of ways. Some fresh cilantro, feta cheese or goat cheese. Chopped onions. Maybe a little dollop of greek yogurt.

This is good. And, for chili, quick and easy. It has just the right amount of heat. I imagine this will be even better tomorrow. When I make this again, it will fun to vary it a little. Might be nice to add some finely grated carrots. Maybe substitute black beans for the chickpeas. I liked the idea of the ginger, thinking it would be a nice twist on the flavor of chili, but the truth is, I didn’t really taste it. Next time, I will either increase the amount a bit, or just leave it out. I imagine there are several ways to use this as a leftover. I look forward to putting some in a oven-safe bowl, making an indention on the top, cracking an egg in it, and then baking it until the egg is set. Would also be good used as in a burrito.

Nutritional data: