Slow-Cooker Vegetarian Chili

This was a big family hit. Added kidney beans (well-rinsed) and local store didn't have no- or low-sodium tomato paste so used no-salt-added tomato sauce - one brother commented more like soup than chili, though liked it very much. Left out the salt entirely so everyone could season to taste if they liked. Cooked overnight on low and kept on "warm" for a couple hours until everyone arrived. Delicious! Was also skeptical about sweet potatoes but they were wonderful. My brother is prone to kidney stones so is vegetarian & careful about sodium and doesn't typically do leftovers but he was happy to take the leftovers home. (With 4 of us eating, including a couple of salads & bread with the meal, only a couple cups left over. )

Even the meat eaters in the family loved this. I don't put the peppers in, but add an extra can of beans. I have the ingredients at on hand at all times, so it's a good stand by dinner. If the sweet potatoes aren't cooked, I pop it all in the instapot for a quick zap.

After 6 hours, the sweet potato was still crunchy. At 8 hours it was better, but not quite ready. We ate something else for dinner and I’m leaving it on a low setting overnight. Give yourself extra time with this one.

This was pretty satisfying, I froze most of it, and had some today for lunch. I topped it with chopped shallots and diced avocados and it was great! Hit the spot on a cold winter's day.

I was suspicious about the sweet potato. Four cups is a lot but it is a bland vegetable and I kept thinking of the Vitamin A content. It was delicious. Will I make any changes the next time? Yes. I will leave out 1 pepper and add another can of beans. Flavor was excellent. The blend of the pepper, potato, onion, garlic, & tomato was superb. Try it.