The Perfect Seasonal Dish: Pumpkin Chili
Fall is in full swing! If you haven’t yet made a soup or a chili this season, this is where you should start:
Photo: One Lovely Life
RECIPE: Amazing Pumpkin Chili (GF/DF)
Happy Halloween everyone! Whether you’re dressing up and going to a costume party or staying in your comfies at home waiting for an appropriate time to start celebrating Christmas publicly, you need to feed your body. And what better way than with this delicious Turkey and Pumpkin Chili?
When I decided to have some of my siblings over for a Halloween themed evening of pumpkin carving, candy and chocolate, and a hearty seasonal dinner, I knew a big pot of chili was the way to go. I found a recipe online, adjusted the ingredients, and got to work. It’s getting chilly here in Vancouver, so this is the perfect dish to help you stay warm and cozy (and healthy!)
Chili is super easy to make, even for the beginner chef. And you can adjust the flavour and spices to your liking (for me, I add lots of garlic, and a dash of turmeric on top of everything else!) The pumpkin puree adds a great texture, heartiness, and lots of fiber to the dish, while the ground turkey is a lighter and healthier option to red meat. You can totally nix the meat entirely and make this vegetarian/vegan, no problem. It’s all done in one pot and is ready in roughly 40 minutes. Here’s the list of ingredients and simple directions:
INGREDIENTS:
Olive oil
1 lb. ground turkey (can be removed or substituted to make dish veg friendly)
2 garlic cloves (or 6, if you love garlic like me!)
1 red onion, diced
2 cups of mushrooms, sliced
2 Tbsp chili powder
1 Tbsp ground cumin
½ Tbsp onion powder
1 tsp smoked paprika
Dash of cayenne
1-15oz can of pumpkin puree
1-15oz can of white kidney beans
1-15oz can of black beans
1-28oz can of diced tomatoes, not drained (no added salt)
Salt and pepper to taste
DIRECTIONS:
Using a dutch oven or large pot on medium heat, heat up a splash of olive oil and brown the ground turkey. Once cooked, remove from pan.
Using the same pan the turkey was cooked in, add more olive oil then sauté the garlic, onion, and mushrooms together – cook 3-5 minutes.
Mix in the cooked ground turkey to the mushrooms and onions.
Add all the spices and stir until evenly dispersed.
Stir in the rest of the ingredients (pumpkin puree, white kidney beans, black beans, diced tomatoes).
Turn the heat to med-low, cover with a lid, and let simmer for 20 minutes. Serve as-is or add some chopped cilantro. (We ate it with Jalapeno and Cheddar Popcorners – YUM! Highly recommend)
HAPPY HALLOWEEN!
Hope you enjoy the last day of October! Only two months left until a new year and a new decade… how crazy is that??
Hello! Catherine here.
I’m a Vancouver-based interior designer and love all things creative! I’ll be sharing things that inspire me, posting design tips and DIY projects, chatting about all kinds of topics, and hopefully inspiring some people to make little changes at home to create an environment that is functional, beautiful, and a perfect reflection of you!
