I just feel like announcing that it is actually getting cold. It’s beginning to feel like fall, and I love it. I think fall is my favorite cooking season; it is all about cozy one-pot meals, warming spices, and slower cooking — things that make the house smell wonderful!
I’m thinking this chili is a perfect comfort food for a weekend night with friends, family, and a fire in the fireplace! How about with some sweet cornbread? Perfect! Or you can make this chili over the weekend and serve it up all week!
P.S. You can expect a super delicious and unique cornbread recipe on Wednesday. I can’t very well serve chili without it!
Recipe
4 small jalapeño peppers, roasted
4 cups butternut squash, peeled and cut into approximately 1/2-inch cubes
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup finely chopped onion
1 teaspoon finely minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon finely minced chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
1-1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 tablespoon chili powder
1/2 cup red wine
1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes in their juices
Corn kernels from 4 ears of fresh corn
1 ( 15-ounce) can red kidney beans
1 (15-ounce) can white kidney beans
1-1/2 tablespoons finely chopped, fresh oregano
Olive oil
Sea salt and brown sugar to taste
1/3 cup each for garnish: shredded sharp cheddar cheese, diced avocado, diced red onion
- To roast the jalapeño peppers: preheat the broiler. Cut each one in half and remove all of the seeds. Place the peppers round side up on a foil-lined baking sheet and put directly under the broiler until the skin is fairly evenly charred, about 3 minutes. Remove from the broiler and then wrap them in the foil you broiled them on, leaving at least a few inches of air inside. Let them steam this way for about 5 minutes. Use your hands or the dull side of a paring knife to remove the skin. Finely chop the peeled peppers and set aside two tablespoons of them to add to the chili.
- Preheat the oven to 475 degrees F and line a baking sheet with foil.
- Add the cut butternut squash to the foil and drizzle it generously with olive oil. Then sprinkle with the brown sugar and cinnamon and toss to evenly coat all of the squash.
- Place in the preheated oven until the squash becomes golden brown, about 10 minutes per side.
- While the squash is roasting, coat the bottom of a large stock pot or Dutch oven with olive oil.
- Add the onion and garlic and over medium heat, cook until the onion begins to brown, about 4 minutes.
- Add in the 2 tablespoons of the finely chopped jalapeños, along with the chipotles, cumin, and chili powder. Cook until it becomes very aromatic, about 1 minute.
- Then turn the heat to low and deglaze the pan with the wine.
- Turn the heat up to medium-high and cook until the wine is reduced by about half, about 4 minutes.
- Add the tomatoes, corn, all of the beans, and the roasted butternut squash. Lower the heat a bit and simmer for about 10 minutes to blend all of the flavors.
- Add the oregano and season to taste with salt and brown sugar.
- Serve with cheddar cheese, red onion, and avocado.
Notes
To save time, you can buy canned, roasted green peppers. They will likely not be as strong in flavor, so you might want to add more of the chipotles!
Ooo, now that looks scrumptious. It doesn’t look like chili, but the ingredients are obviously there for it. I could see myself actually eating this with tortilla chips even, as a chunky dip. On that note, it could be good with sour cream, too, yum.
I am so tickled about the upcoming fall, well it’s up coming here, it doesn’t exactly feel fall like (note not to buy pumpkins too early in the season, it tasted like.. um, the earth) that said, this dish looks delish, you used some of my fav ingredients.
This looks wonderful. Such bright and vibrant colors! I’m totally with you on the one-pot meals – they’re one of my favorite things about this time of year, so I’m always looking for new ones. Pretty sure I could eat this one every day
Thanks, Carrie! Hope you enjoy eating these beautiful colors!
The cool weather has not really hit my house yet, but I agree autumn in Los Angeles can’t be beat. GREG
This looks beautiful — and sounds delicious. Definitely worth giving this a try! Thanks so much!
This looks delicious!
How much corn do you use?
Sarah, thanks so much for pointing that out! I just added the corn measurements to the recipe — it’s corn kernels from 4 ears of fresh corn. Enjoy!
Hello, love this recipe! We’ve actually included it in our post about Meatless Monday and vegetarian recipes. If you’d like to take a look, the article is here: http://www.community.ettitude.com.au/10-eat-meat/
I made this and it was delicious! I added more cinnamon to the chili while it was cooking amd topped it off with more brown sugar to get the kids to eat it!
Whitney, this is one of my favorite recipes for fall. I’m so happy you tried it and liked it! Thank you for hanging out on Cooking On The Weekends!
I cooked this today – and it might have been the best thing I ever cooked! Such an awesome recipe! Yay! Thank you for sharing it!
I like very spicy food, and so I did add a lot more chipotle peppers than the recipe calls for – and swapped the brown sugar for maple syrup.
Meghna, thank you for sharing with me! I’m thrilled you enjoyed it, and the extra heat sounds delicious!
Can I do this in a crock pot?
Hey Rob, I haven’t tried it in a crock pot, but I think it would work well.