For the football games on New Years Day, my parents had friends over for a viewing party and so I wanted to make something that we could eat. What goes better with football than chili? Not much. My dad has been making the same chili recipe for as long as I can remember and it’s been passed down in his family so it’s famous in our house. It has lots of meat in it however, so I decided to use the recipe and just modify it to make it with just beans instead. I threw everything in the pot and let it simmer for a few hours until it was dinner time and now I have the Allen’s secret chili recipe, and now you’ll have it too. There’s a special spice blend that you’ll need to make beforehand and then use it in the chili, but it makes enough to last you about 30 batches. This chili is a little spicy, filling, packed with flavor and fiber, and perfect for the frigid temperatures we’re having right now. It’s written as Tokyo Tom’s Chili recipe, so the modified name is now named after my dad; Bad Billy’s Bean Chili. Nice ring to it, huh?

Bad Billy’s Bean Chili

1 tbsp olive oil

1 large yellow onion, diced

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 green bell pepper, diced

1 tsp Robert’s spice blend

1 tbsp cumin

6-7 tsp chili powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp black pepper

sprinkle red chili flakes

2 tsp minced garlic

1 15 oz can tomato sauce

2 15 oz can diced tomatoes

1 bay leaf

4 cups vegetable broth

3 cans of tri-bean blend, mine had black, kidney, and white beans I think? or you can just add 3 cans of your favorite beans

1. Heat oil in a large stockpot over medium heat and add onions and peppers and cook for about 5 minutes. Add garlic and spices, and let them bloom until fragrant.
2. Pour in the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, broth, and beans then add the bay leaf.
3. Stir and let it simmer up to 3-4 hours until it’s thickened.
4. Serve topped with diced avocado or vegan cheese shreds, both were good.
   

   

Those are the original recipes, and here’s the recipe for the Robert’s Spice Blend:

4 tsp onion powder

1 tbsp paprika

2 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp celery salt

1 1/2 tsp garlic salt

1 1/2 tsp ground white pepper

1 tsp ground mustard

1 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1 1/2 tsp thyme leaves

Combine all spices and store in an airtight container.

I brought my homemade hummus over for an appetizer and luckily someone brought cowboy caviar so we had enough snacks. Also I made Vegan Cornbread as our side and it was delicious, especially warm and crumbled up in the chili!

Easy Vegan Cornbread

2 boxes of Vegetarian Jiffy Cornbread mix

2/3 cup unsweetened almond milk

2 flax eggs (2 tbsp ground flaxseed mixed with 6 tbsp water, sit and let bloom)

2 tbsp Earth Balance vegan butter spread

few sprinkles of vegan cheddar shreds

1. Mix all ingredients until well combined and pour into a greased baking dish.
2. Bake according to the box instructions for about 25 minutes or until edges are getting brown.
3. While it’s warm, I use a little more vegan butter and spread it on top and it melts to give it a more buttery flavor and gives it a little more moisture.

I also attempted to make one of my old dessert staples, Peanut Butter Brownie Bites but they definitely didn’t add up to what I used to make. I need to figure out how to make vegan brownies because using flax eggs instead of real eggs made my batter boil and it’s like it never really rises or cooks through. It seemed really oily while baking, so I drained some oil off and after I let them cool, I moved them to a paper towel to drain any excess oil. I added some baking powder to the next batch to see if it would help, and all it did was create brownie lava explosion all over the muffin tin. Maybe try a mashed banana next time? What I was left with a very crunchy exterior and a gooey interior. I just decided to keep going with it and see who wanted to be my guinea pigs and gave them a warning about their crunchiness. Surprisingly, people at them and my mom said she really liked them. They are chewy almost like a caramel, but super crispy when you bite into them. I’m not saying they’re the best, but if you want to try them here’s the recipe. Brownies are also something else I need to work on this year! But the best part was the batter, it tastes just like brownie batter and it doesn’t have eggs so you can lick the bowl worry free!

Peanut Butter Brownie Bites

1 box Betty Crocker Dark Chocolate Brownie Mix, or look for one without milk or egg ingredients

1/4 cup water

1/3 cup oil

2 flax eggs

1/4 cup smooth peanut butter

1/4 cup mini Enjoy Life chips

1. Spray a mini muffin tin with oil and preheat oven to 350*
2. Mix together the brownie mix, water, oil, and flax eggs.
3. Use a small ice cream scoop to fill the muffin tins about 3/4 full and bake for 15-20 minutes.
4. Remove from muffin tins and drain any excess oil on a paper towel and use your finger to make a small divot in the middle of each brownie bite.
5. Heat peanut butter in the microwave for about 30 seconds until it’s melted and use a spoon to fill each divot on the brownies with a small amount of melted peanut butter.
6. When cooled, top with some vegan mini chips.

If you’ve figured out the secret to easy vegan brownies, please let me know!