Vegan Chili with "Meat"

It's late October and that can only mean one thing...chili season is upon us. I love chili and have been making it since I was a teenager. Every batch I've ever made has had one thing in common: meat. With my recent cardiovascular disease diagnosis I have been making an effort to eat less meat. While I have eaten vegetarian chilis before, I have never actually made one or eaten one that has had some form of vegan meat substitute. There were several different choices for the "meat" at our local Whole Foods, but I ended up choosing Lightlife Smart Ground Original.

The end result was pretty outstanding! The texture of the Lightlife felt authentic in the chili and it had a hearty, meaty flavor. My only complaint about the Lightlife was that the sodium content is a tad high. A 12-oz. package had 84% of the recommended daily intake, which I guess split up in an entire vat of chili (roughly 8-10 servings) is not too terrible. It is a processed food after all. We served the chili over some whole wheat pasta topped with vegan shredded cheese. The kids really enjoyed it and all in all, a solid first crack at vegan "meated" chili.

2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil.

1 large onion, diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 jalapeno, diced

3 stalks celery, sliced thinly

1 12-oz. package Lightlife Smart Ground Original meat substitute

2 15-oz. cans black beans (no salt added), drained and rinsed

1 15-oz. can tomato sauce (no salt added)

1 28-oz. can diced tomatoes (no salt added)

3 Tbsp. tomato paste (no salt added)

1 1/2 cup vegetable broth (no salt added)

3 Tbsp. chili powder

1 Tbsp. ground cumin

1. Heat oil in dutch oven or medium stock pot over medium-low heat. Sweat onion, celery, jalapeno and jalapeno until starting to soften, about 5 minutes.

2. Add Lightlife to pot, breaking up into small to medium chunks. Cook with vegetables for 3 minutes.

3. Add remaining ingredients and a pinch or two of salt and stir to combine. Bring to a low boil, then reduce heat to low, cover, and cook for about an hour and a half, stirring every 10-15 minutes.

4. Enjoy!