~cold weather = must have comfort food~

Whenever it's cold out, my family craves comfort food. This time we desired Chili, but I still wanted to serve my family a healthy meal. This is the recipe I landed on and we LOVED it! There are layers of flavor, added veggies to boost the healthfulness...and all the flavor we love in chili!

Beef & Bean Chili

2 TBS olive oil
2 lg sweet onions, diced
2 lg red bell peppers, diced
4 sm jalapeno peppers, finely diced
4 med cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 lbs lean ground beef
1/4 c chili powder
2 tsp dried basil
1 TBS cumin
1/4 c. Worcestershire sauce
28 oz can diced tomatoes
2 TBS tomato paste
4 c. reduced sodium beef broth
15 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
15 ox can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
3 whole bay leaves
1 TBS sea salt
1 TBS black pepper
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

**Top with 2% cheddar cheese and light sour cream.**

Heat oil, in dutch oven. Add onions and cook on medium for 15 to 20 minutes until they begin to caramelize. Add bell pepper and jalapenos and cook for 5 more minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more. Add ground beef, chili powder, basil and cumin and cook until beef is browned - 5 to 7 minutes. Add a little broth and scrape brown bits off pan. Add all remaining ingredients and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove bay leaves before serving.