Veggie Beef Chili is the perfect comfort food on a cold winter day. It’s my Aunt Mary’s famous recipe, loaded with ground beef, beans, tomatoes and perfectly spiced. It’s made extra healthy with hidden veggies from the food processor!

Aunt Mary’s Famous Recipe

The four day New Year’s weekend has come to a close and sadly another holiday isn’t coming for awhile, but, winter isn’t so bad, at least not yet. I made Veggie Beef Chili this weekend, the base of the recipe coming from my Aunt Mary. Her chili may be her only culinary claim to fame as she “hates cooking.” But, in our family, her chili is everyone’s absolute favorite! It is one of the first recipes I headed off to college with in my, now full, recipe book.

Hidden Veggies

I have added a ton of veggies to her classic beef chili, but the flavors are hers. Chili is just the perfect chance to add nutrition with the help of a food processor without it altering the finished dish. So, why not make that one- pot favorite a bit healthier? Whether you have picky kids or just adults, everyone can eat more veggies. And, my kids would agree, the toppings are the best part! We top ours with shredded cheddar, a dollop of plain yogurt, avocado, and chips or crackers for dipping.

Veggie Beef Chili is the perfect large batch one pot meal to feed a crowd or freeze a bunch for later. It’s perfect for game day with some easy extras like chips and guacamole. Especially because you can throw the batch together quickly and it can sit on the stovetop all day, ready whenever your guests are.

Leftover Chili?

I don’t hesitate to make a big batch for just our family, because the leftovers are the best part. I like to freeze extras in different size containers and jars. Larger containers for another chili night, just thaw overnight for an easy weeknight lunch or dinner. But, also smaller containers for easy dinners like chili dogs and chili topped baked potatoes with all the chili fixings.

So here is Aunt Mar Mar’s Famous Chili, the healthier version!

Veggie Beef Chili

Meryl Downing

Chili is the perfect comfort food on a cold winter day. Made extra healthy with hidden veggies from the food processor.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Total Time 2 hrs

Course Dinner

Cuisine American

Servings 10

Ingredients

1 lb ground beef
1 onion
2 carrots
2 ribs celery
1 bell pepper any color
1 t salt
10 grinds fresh pepper
4 cloves garlic minced
1 T paprika
2 T chili powder
2 t cumin
2 T brown sugar
2 T Worcestershire
2 T red wine vinegar
2-3 cans beans any combination of kidney, black, red, pinto
1 can tomato paste plus rinsed with 1 can of water
2 28 oz cans tomatoes crushed, diced, or whole are fine
Serve with shredded cheese plain yogurt, avocado or guacamole, lime wedges and tortilla chips or crackers

Instructions

Set a large soup pot over medium heat and begin browning beef (I did not add any oil, just used the fat from the beef to saute the veggies)
While the beef is browning, process all veggies in a food processor (not garlic) until finely diced
Move the beef to one side of the pot and add your veggies to the other side, letting the beef finish browning and the veggies saute
When beef is browned, add garlic, tomatoes (can also be done in the food processor) and all other ingredients and simmer at least 1 to 2 hours on low, stirring occasionally
Garnish and serve

Keyword Chili, Hidden Veggies