Roasted Butternut Squash and Bean Chili with Swiss Chard

What a fun recipe this turned out to be! I had one butternut squash that had been sitting in the fridge for a week and I didn't want to make a typical soup. I surfed through the internet and found a few recipes, altered and combined some of them and came up with this. The chili has a 'comfort food' feeling, yet its super easy to make. Each serving is low in calories, high in fiber and very high in vitamin A and has a considerable amount of potassium. Hopefully the kids will love it because of all the colors they see in a bowl. My 5 year old loved it!

Makes: 6-8 servings

Calories: About 350 per serving


Ingredients:

3-4 cups Butternut squash (1/4" cubed)
1 large jalapeno (split lengthwise through the middle)
1 tbsp olive oil
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 medium yellow onion, diced
1 can roasted, diced tomato
1 can black beans
1 can white beans
1 cup vegetable broth (more if needed/desired)
Chili seasoning powder, as desired
1 bunch swiss chard, roughly chopped (can be substituted with spinach)

Preheat oven to 350F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray with a cooking spray (like PAM). Add the butternut squash in a single layer and put it in the oven. Let it roast till squash is soft (but not mushy) and lightly brown, about 20 minutes. Try and flip the squash on the baking sheet half way through. Take out of the oven.

Take a small piece of aluminum foil, form it into a cup and put in the jalapeno. Wrap the foil around it and put that into the oven as well. Take it out 10 minutes later, open the foil and put the opened cup under the broil setting to slightly char the jalapeno. Remove from oven and let it cool. Chop roughly and put aside.



In a saucepan, heat the olive oil and add the chopped garlic and then the onions. Saute for a few mins, till soft and slightly golden. Add the rest of the ingredients except for the squash, jalapenos and chard. Cook for 15-20 minutes on medium heat (add more vegetable stock if it seems too thick). Add the squash and jalapenos and cook for 5-7 more minutes. Now add the chard and cook for another 5-7 minutes. Remove from heat.






Serve hot in a bowl (with some shredded cheddar cheese on top if you want to entice children to eat it).

Note: I added some extra cumin and salt despite using the chili seasoning. If you cannot find chili seasoning, use the seasonings in one of my previous recipes for chili. You can also use any combination of beans you like.

Brown Chickpeas (Kala Chana) Chaat

I made this for lunch the other day because I got canned 'kala chana' for the first time and wanted to try them out. Since chickpeas are a good source of protein and fiber and are low in fat, they are perfect for a healthy lunch or snack. You can make your own variations and add vegetables like boiled potatoes or top it up with some yogurt raita.

Calories: About 180-200 per serving

Makes: 3-4 servings

Ingredients:

2 cans (200 grams each) Brown Chickpeas in water, drained (or boiled Brown Chickpeas)

1 tbsp oil

6 curry leaves

1/2 tsp cumin (zeera)

2 green chilies, thinly sliced

1-2 handsful cilantro

4 tbsp thick tamarind paste (soak tamarind in water and squeeze out seeds, etc when soft)

Salt, to taste

Red chili powder, to taste

2 tbsp cooked tomato salsa (from the "Pan-seared Fish with Cooked Tomato Salsa" recipe)

Heat oil and add the curry leaves and cumin. When they crackle, add the brown chickpeas, salt and red chilies. Add the tamarind paste, half the cilantro and green chilies. Cook for about 4-5 minutes (adding a few teaspoons of water if too dry). Taste and adjust to your taste preferences. Add the tomato salsa. Sprinkle with remaining cilantro and cover on very low heat for 5 minutes. Serve.

Note: If you do not have prepared cooked salsa, you can add a tomato and half a sliced onion initially to the oil after the curry leaves and cumin and cook on medium heat for a few minutes before adding the chickpeas.

You can also make this with the lighter colored variety of chickpeas.

Healthy Chili

Not only do I love chili, but I also find it quite filling even when I eat only a little. So its good if you are trying to watch your food intake. Everyone has their preferences as to what their chili should taste like, but this is the healthiest one I have come across. Please feel free to alter is according to your taste.

Serves:4

Calories: About 300 or so for 1 and a half cup of chili.

Ingredients:

1 tsp olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

400 grams lean ground beef/chicken/turkey

1 can crushed tomatoes

4 oz tomato sauce

2 cans red kidney beans

1 tsp cayenne pepper

1/2 tsp chili powder

1-2 tsp cumin powder

salt, to taste

1/2 sachet taco/chili seasoning (optional)

Heat oil in a pot over medium heat. Add onions and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, till soft and golden. Add the meat and taco seasoning (if using) and saute for a few minutes till brown. Add the kidney beans and cook on medium-low heat for 4-5 minutes. Add the crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, cayenne pepper, chili powder and cumin. Cook on medium-low heat for 15-20 minutes (or longer if you have more time).

Serving suggestions: Serve with chopped onions, shredded cheddar cheese and green chilies in vinegar. A fun way to serve it to children is to make a "chili dog" station. Line up hot dog buns, hot dogs, chili, ketchup, mustard, shredded cheddar cheese, onions (and anything else they like) and let them build their own dogs. In fact, I have done this for football (or other sports) parties for adults and they love it as much as the kids!