Bon Appetit Black Bean Chili with Butternut Squash

Since temperatures are in the 80's in my area this week, I'm cramming my last few soup, stew, and chili recipes in before the thermometer hits the 90's. This weekend I tried the Black Bean Chili with Butternut Squash from the February issue of Bon Appetit.

This dish takes a considerable amount of prep and cooking time: three and a half hours, combined. Pre-planning is definitely involved to get this recipe ready for the dinner table. The ingredients are easily accessible, though, and everything was available at my local grocery store. The only negative aspect of prepping is the cutting and peeling of the butternut squash, which can be time consuming.

I did forget to buy the pickled jalapenos and sour cream as suggested for serving. The other substitution that I made was to use the black beans available at my grocery store, not special order the beans from the two websites that Bon Appetit recommends. The added expense was not something justifiable for my family budget and I feel that the dish tasted great regardless.

My two-year-old loved this recipe. He ate his whole bowl and asked for seconds. My four-year-old also ate his whole serving and had leftovers for lunch today. I thought it was a good tasting chili, but I think that next time I would add more salt, it was a little sweeter than I think was intended. Many people would balk at the idea of meatless chili, but I thought this vegetarian (vegan if you skip the dairy toppings) version was a great way to introduce healthier and less-expensive recipes to my household. I will definitely make this recipe in the future (with more salt and the suggested toppings).

For the recipe visit Bon Appetit Black Bean Chili with Butternut Squash.

(Note: Sorry about the unimpressive photo. My iPod Touch was the only camera available at the time.)