I know, your probably thinking, chili? But it’s summer! Well, this isn’t your typical chili. Surprisingly light, this recipe makes more of a chili topping to serve a top a bed of rice or quinoa. It’s perfect for rainy summer days when you want to stay in and eat something warm, and plus, after the prep work, it comes together fairly quickly.

White Bean and Chorizo Chili

• About 3 ounces (Vegan) Chorizo ( I used Melissa’s Soyrizo, which is about half of one link. If you’re a meat eater, you can substitute for regular chorizo, but I can’t guarantee the same results)
• olive oil (for the pan, I eyeballed)
• 1 red onion, roughly chopped
• 1 red pepper, deseeded and roughly chopped
• small bunch of sprigs of fresh rosemary, finely chopped
• 3 fresh bay leaves (or two large ones)
• 1 cup vegetable broth plus 1/2 cup water
• 1 19 oz can cannellini beans (you can probably experiment with other white bean varieties as well)

1. Begin by peeling your onion and deseeding your pepper. At the same time, either spray or add some oil (about 1T or less) to a non-stick cooking pan on medium-high. Break up your chorizo and add to the pan. If you are using Soyrizo, press into the pan like a pancake. Soyrizo will take anywhere from 5 to 10 minutes, and you will need to flip it half way through. You want the Soyrizo to get dark and crisp, but not burnt. Once the Soyrizo is done, remove from pan (do not wash pan).

2. Roughly chop the red pepper into slightly larger cubes than the onion. Add a little more oil to the pan where the chorizo was, turn down the heat to medium lower, and add the pepper and onion. You’ll want to cook the onion and pepper 5 to 10 minutes, until the onion is translucent and pepper is soft. Both should take on a slightly darker color from the chorizo remnants in the pan.

3. Gather your rosemary and bay leaves

4. Finely chop your rosemary (pictured above). Once your vegetables are almost done, add your chorizo back into the pan.

5. Once the chorizo has been added and vegetables are cooked through, add bay leaves and chopped rosemary to pan and incorporate into mixture. (Your vegetables should look like above at this point)

6. Add your beans and 1 cup vegetable stock and 1/2 cup water to the pan. The liquid should completely cover the beans. If it does not, add a tiny bit more water or vegetable broth. Cook for about 25 minutes or so, until all liquid is cooked out, beans are soft and mixture has thickened.

7. Remove bay leaves, season with salt or pepper if needed, and serve. (Serving suggestion: top a southwestern quinoa with this chili and avocado, add veggies or salad on the side)

Happy Eating.

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