Years ago, I went on a vegetarian diet for health reasons and found one of my favorite chili recipes. I’ve altered it with my own unique flavors and surprisingly, Scott loves it too.
This recipe is super easy to make, especially on a boat – during a wind storm! LOL. Be sure to follow the key points below, so your chili doesn’t get soggy.
There are all kinds of meat substitutes, especially today. I haven’t tried any of the new ones, like “Impossible burger”, but I do plan on it. We’ll let you know what we think. For this recipe, we use our favorite crumbles, which are from Morning Star. Be sure to not over cook the crumbles, or they will get mushy.
Recently, Scott and I made this recipe on the boat during a wind storm. It was perfect for our cozy winter night and we also baked corn bread to accompany it. Enjoy!
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Vegetarian Chili
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Even the meat lovers in your family will love this chili! It is a must try for everyone! Add as much spice as you want as you season it.
Instructions
Heat garlic oil in a small stock pot and add onion. Cook for about 5 minutes until tender.
Add tomatoes and spices and cook on medium heat for about 5 minutes.
Add vegetable broth, vinegar and maple syrup and cook on medium high heat for about 15 minutes. Taste for seasoning and adjust as needed.
Add Morning Star crumbles and kidney beans and cook on medium high heat for about 10 - 15 minutes.
Once heated thoroughly, serve immediately with toppings: scallions, sour cream and shredded cheddar cheese.
Recipe Notes
Do not over cook the meat substitute or kidney beans, as they will become mushy.
Hearty Beef Stew with Mushrooms, Carrots and Potatoes
It’s finally winter and who doesn’t love beef stew? This recipe is set up to make in an oven, but you can easily make it on a stove top using a Dutch oven. You don’t have to spend a lot of money on an expensive Dutch oven. I bought my Martha Stewart Enameled Cast Iron 6 qt. Round Casserole Dutch Oven for just $99. Simply keep it at a simmer, stir often and be sure to check on it regularly.
Whether you have been boating all day or working outside in the yard, there’s nothing more comforting than a bowl of hot stew with tender beef. I recently served this for one of my dinner parties, with homemade artisan bread and it was a huge hit! Enjoy!
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Hearty Beef Stew with Mushrooms, Carrots and Potatoes
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This hearty stew is elegant enough to serve at your finest dinner parties or for your hungry boating crowd. Give yourself at least three hours to cook it for the ideal taste and tenderness.
Instructions
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Pre-heat oven to 300º. Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in Dutch oven on medium high. Cook bacon until crisp and remove with a slotted spoon to a paper towel covered plate. Cut chuck roast into 2" pieces. Season beef with salt and pepper. Brown beef on all sides, then remove from pot and set aside with bacon.
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Add remaining olive oil to Dutch oven and add onion. Cook for about 5 minutes until tender. Add garlic cloves, beef and bacon to the pot. Add thyme, bay leaves and red wine, cooking for about 5 minutes. Add beef stock and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover and place pot in oven. Cook for 2 hours and check regularly. Add more broth if needed.
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Add carrots, mushrooms and potatoes to beef stew and continue cooking in oven for 1 hour or until potatoes are tender. Remove from oven and return pot to stovetop. Remove thyme sprigs and bay leaves. Heat pot to a simmer. Add water to corn starch and add to beef stew to thicken. Stir gently. If it thickens too much, simply add a bit more stock. Serve with warm artisan bread.
Vegetarian Enchiladas
Vegetarian enchiladas on a boat? Okay, so I know we can’t make enchiladas on our boat unless we get a toaster oven. Scott and I have looked into getting one, but we don’t know how much time we would spend on the boat during the winter. A toaster oven would take up a lot of counter space and during the summer, we use our Magma Gas Grill
Then there’s the question, of which one to buy? There are many choices out there and since we don’t own one personally, we wonder what would be best? For me, I would want one that can easily bake without scorching the food. At the same time, I don’t want to spend a lot of money on something we might not use a lot. So stay tuned and we’ll let you know what we decide.
In the meantime, I still wanted to share with you one of my favorite healthy recipes. This is a great dish for a Sunday evening after you have spent all weekend boating and want some healthy comfort food. In this recipe, we are using canned green enchilada sauce for ease of prep on a boat.
This recipe does call for a lot of chopped vegetables. As I have mentioned before, I love my Onion & Vegetable Chopper. Here’s a quick demo video:
This post may contain affiliate links for products I mention.
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Vegetarian Enchiladas
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These vegetarian enchiladas are so delicious that even the meat lovers love them!
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 cup white mushrooms, chopped
- 1 cup yellow onion, chopped
- 1/2 cup red bell pepper, chopped
- 1/2 cup orange bell pepper, chopped
- 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp fresh ground pepper
- 1 tsp ancho chili powder
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 cup zucchini, chopped
- 1 12oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 6 10" tortillas, flour & corn combo or use your favorite type of tortilla
- 1 12oz can green chile enchilada sauce
- 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1/4 cup green onions, sliced
- 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
- 1/4 cup tomato, chopped
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 cup white mushrooms, chopped
- 1 cup yellow onion, chopped
- 1/2 cup red bell pepper, chopped
- 1/2 cup orange bell pepper, chopped
- 1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp fresh ground pepper
- 1 tsp ancho chili powder
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 cup zucchini, chopped
- 1 12oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 6 10" tortillas, flour & corn combo or use your favorite type of tortilla
- 1 12oz can green chile enchilada sauce
- 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1/4 cup green onions, sliced
- 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
- 1/4 cup tomato, chopped
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Instructions
Heat olive oil in a large skillet and saute' mushrooms, onion and bell peppers. Season with crushed red pepper flakes, salt, pepper, chili powder and cumin. Cook until tender and add garlic. Add zucchini and black beans and remove from heat.
Pre-heat oven to 375º. Warm tortillas in microwave under a moistened paper towel for about 15 seconds. Grease a 9 x 13 casserole dish and spread about 1/8 cup of enchilada sauce in the bottom of the dish. Holding a tortilla, fill it with about 1/6 of the bean mixture and carefully roll up and place in dish. Repeat with remaining tortillas. (If you have left over bean mixture, you can spread it on top of the enchiladas). Pour enchilada sauce evenly over all of the tortillas, covering each of them. Sprinkle cheese and cover with non-stick foil. Bake for 20 minutes and then remove foil and bake for another 5 minutes.
Top with chopped green onions, cilantro and tomato. Serve immediately.
Cheese Tortellini Pasta Recipe
Fresh cheese tortellini pasta can be found in the cheese section of your grocery store. While my Italian friends will only make fresh pasta from scratch, I find it much easier to just buy it freshly made. Our local Safeway and Whole Foods both have great selections of fresh pasta.
Pasta is one of the easiest things to prepare on a boat , since you really just need two pots. One for boiling pasta and the other for the sauce. When entertaining guests on a boat, the last thing you want to do is be spending time in the galley cooking all day. I would rather be sharing a glass of wine or a cocktail with my guests. What I love about this cheese tortellini pasta recipe is that it is super easy and hearty for the hungry sailors at dinner. I love to serve this over the Holidays as it is also festive in color.
Since this pasta is so rich, I love to pair it with a mild green salad.
Enjoy!
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Cheese Tortellini Pasta with Asparagus & Mushrooms
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This pasta is very rich and hearty. Serve it with your favorite salad and crusty bread and you have the perfect dinner!
Instructions
Heat olive oil in a large skillet. Add onions, mushrooms, garlic and prociutto. Cook for about 5-8 minutes until prociutto is slightly crispy. Season with salt, pepper and crushed red pepper flakes.
Cook pasta according to directions and be sure to not over cook or boil too hard. Reserve a 1/2 cup of pasta liquid.
Add whipping cream to the skillet and bring to a boil. Reduce and simmer for about 5 minutes until thickened slightly. Add asparagus and cook for another 3-5 minutes until tender. If you need to thicken the sauce more, add some of the reserved pasta liquid. Add pasta and shredded cheese to the cream mixture and blend well. Serve with crusty bread.
Chicken Chili for those tailgating nights!
White chili, also known as Chicken Chili is a favorite in our house. Now that Fall & Winter is arriving, who doesn’t love chili especially when watching your favorite football team? Chili is actually very easy to make on a boat in a small galley and it keeps for a few days for great leftovers.
While I love traditional chili, there’s something about Chicken Chili that is just as tasty and makes me feel like I’m eating healthier! Happy cooking!
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Chicken Chili
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This medium spicy chili is easy to make and a definite crowd pleaser. Even my husband, who only likes traditional chili loves this recipe!
Instructions
In a large pot, heat canola oil and add onion & jalapeno. Cook until tender under medium high heat. Add diced garlic and all of the spices and cook for about 2 minutes (do not let the garlic burn). Add 1/2 of the white kidney beans and smash them in the pot. Add chicken broth, bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Add corn, chicken, remaining white kidney beans and pinto beans. Simmer for about 25 minutes. If you want it thicker, add 1 tbsp. of water to the corn starch and mix thoroughly. Add to the chili, stirring to keep it from clumping.
Serve with shredded cheddar cheese, diced avocado, sour cream, chopped cilantro & crushed tortilla chips.
Recipe Notes
Since I don't like chopping onions & other veggies, especially on a boat, I use my Onion Chopper by Müeller . It works great, collects the onion in the bin (no mess and no tears) and the clean up is easy!
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