Vegan Presidential Chili

--1 can kidney beans (and the goop!) (I used black beans and ran the calories with black beans because that was what I had on hand)
--1 1/2 cups (or 1 can) garbanzo beans
--1 lb vegan grounds (I used Quorn brand)
--1 green bell pepper, chopped
--1 large onion, chopped
--5-6 medium tomatoes, chopped (include seeds and all) (I used a 24 oz can of diced tomatoes)
--4 chopped cloves of garlic
--1 tsp cumin
--1 tsp oregano
--1 tsp basil
--1 tsp turmeric
--2 tsp chili powder (I started with 1, but added another after a few hours. Do what's right for your family)
--1 tsp salt
--3 T red wine vinegar

The original recipe called for kidney beans in place of black beans, and was not vegan since it contained ground beef in place of the vegan grounds, but this still tastes delicious with my modifications. I hope you think so too!

I used a 6 quart Smart Pot for Obama's chili.

I made the executive decision to increase all of the spices from the original recipe, because in CrockPot cooking, the slow simmer of the ingredients cooking can overpower added spices. I'm glad that I upped everything---the flavors were there, but they were subtle and not overpowering.

I gave myself a pat on the back.

I also decided to not brown the meat on the stove top. I hate browning meat, and since the chicken I used was quite lean, I just crumbled it in raw. If you are going to use beef, or enjoy browning meat, go for it.

Chop up the tomatoes, garlic, onion, and bell pepper. Add to thecrockpot. Open the can of beans, and pour in the whole thing. Add the ground meat. Stir in all of the spices and the red wine vinegar.

Cover and cook on low for 7-9 hours, or on high for 4-5. I cooked our chili on low for 9 hours.

Season with a bit more salt, to taste.

Obama serves his chili over rice, so we did too. The kids really liked that a lot----they love white rice.

Serving Size: Makes 6 Large Servings