By Paula O’Neill, MS, RN-BC, Clinical Program Manager, Integrative Health & Medicine

We all know that it is much healthier to cook our own meals rather than purchase something frozen, pre-made, or from a fast food restaurant.   You have control over the quality, and quantity, of the ingredients and you know it’s fresh.  But, you ask, who has the time?  Using a crock pot, or slow cooker, can help with that.  Just put all of the ingredients in the pot in the morning, turn the crock pot on, and you will have a delicious, healthy meal at the end of the day.  You can even prepare the pot of ingredients the night before and refrigerate it for the morning. And it doesn’t take much time.

To get you started I’m sharing a recipe my daughter, a great amateur chef, created.  Not only is this chili warm and comforting on a cold winter day, it’s also full of hearty ingredients that are healthy, will fill you up and keep you satisfied.  And remember, because you are controlling the ingredients, if there is something you don’t like, pickled jalapeno peppers for example, just leave them out.

In a crockpot, layer in the following ingredients:

3 red potatoes, chopped

1 bell pepper (any color), chopped

1/4 cup pickled jalapeno peppers, chopped

2 14 oz containers of black beans, drained and rinsed

1 16 oz bag of frozen corn

1 16 oz bag of frozen, shelled edamame

4 cloves of garlic, minced

2 tbsp tomato paste

1 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes

1 tbsp chili en adobo paste

2 cups dry quinoa

4 cups vegetable stock

2 cups water

3 tbsp hot sauce

3 tbsp chili powder

1 tbsp garlic powder

2 tbsp ground cumin

1 tbsp crushed red pepper flakes

Salt and pepper to taste

Garnishes (optional)

Sour cream

Green onions or chives, chopped

Sriracha mayo (1 cup mayo mixed with 3 tbsp sriracha)

Shredded pepper jack cheese (or any type you desire)

Chopped fresh tomatoes

Set your crockpot to the desired temperature depending on how much time you have to cook the chili. Setting it on high will have you devouring this dish in about 3 hours, while setting it on low will take you closer to 5-6 hours, depending on your personal crock pot.

When your chili is ready, garnish with any toppings that suite your taste buds!

Leftovers keep so well in the fridge – the layers of flavor just continue to build. Feel free to freeze any leftovers, too!

To learn other healthy recipes and more, click here.