Yummy Meatless Lentil Chili recipe

Don't ask me how two meat lovers like QG and I ended up with vegetarians for daughters. He and I would be happy with half-pound burgers for dinner every night, while neither of our daughters has touched a morsel of meat for ten years. They're rebels alright, but what can you do?

So, in honor of Lauren, who is here for a couple more weeks before vamoosing off to Brazil, I made up a meatless chili recipe for dinner yesterday, which is based on QG's chili. It's a great time for chili with the cold weather, and the recipe was tasty. It is not too spicy, so you may want to add hot sauce or more chili powder if you're a fan of heat in your chili. We had this with homemade bread fried on the stove in a little butter til crispy. Yum. Try this for a break from meat. It was fun, though I find myself craving roast beef today.

Yummy Meatless Lentil Chili

½ large onion, chopped

½ large red pepper, chopped

5 cloves garlic, minced

Splash of olive oil to coat bottom of pot

2/3 cup dried red lentils

2/3 cup dried brown lentils

1 Tablespoon Cumin

1 Tablespoon thyme

2 Tablespoons taco seasoning (I use Penzeys)

2 Tablespoons molasses

1 Tablespoon chili powder

2 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

1 – 28 oz can crushed tomatoes

4 cups water

1 cup drained canned or frozen corn

In a large pot, sauté the onion, red pepper, and garlic in the olive oil until the onion is translucent. Add all other ingredients except for corn and bring to a boil. Turn down to a simmer and cook an hour more, until lentils are tender. Add the corn for the final fifteen minutes of cooking. Serve topped with grated cheddar cheese and chopped avocados.