Getting Ready for Fall: Crock pot Chilli and Baked Pita Chips

I'm in mourning. I've come to a sad realization over the past couple of days and it makes me so sad. And yes, I'm perhaps being a little melodramatic, but, still...

The thing I've realized is that my cooking habits have got to change. I love our new city but I spend my entire day driving. Well, maybe not the entire day but a lot of it. And the reason that I have to change my cooking habits is because I have to get Hazel off the bus then I have 40 minutes to make dinner and get to the college to pick Aaron up. We then come home and everyone is starving (and if you have seen someone related to Aaron hungry you will know it is scary) and we need to eat pronto.

This means I won't be able to try 3-4 new recipes a week. This means I cant spend a late afternoon in my fabulous new kitchen chopping veggies or sautéing tofu. This means I have to start making crock pot meals, having freezer meals ready, and have lots of quick solutions pretty much everyday.

Now, I want you to know that I love freezer meals but I also love the chopping, and cooking, and seeing it all come together, not just throwing it in a casserole dish and walking away for a few hours.

So, here is the first of the hopefully lots of quick and easy meals to help me get through this year (if we last that long living with only 1 car). This meal was something I threw together with things I had, including the chips.

This meal was delicious, hearty and everyone bowls were empty at the end of dinner.

Vegetarian Crockpot Chilli and Baked Pita Chips

1/2 a chopped Onion

2 tsp of minced Garlic

1 can of Diced Tomatoes (but, I didn't have any so I just chopped 3 fresh tomatoes and threw them in)

2 chopped Zucchinis (I love squash season)

1 can of Chick Peas

1 can of Black Beans

4 tbsp of Tomato Paste (but I didn't have any so I just threw in a can of tomato soup)

1/2 a cup of Salsa

1/2 tsp of Salt

1 tsp of Curry Powder

2 tsp of Basil

2 tsp of Thyme

So...since this is a crock pot meal you really just throw everything in the crock pot, turn it on. High for 3-4 hours or Low for 6-8. Serve hot with buns, or tortilla chips or a favorite around here, Baked Pita Chips.

Baked Pita Chips

This is a super easy and fast 'recipe'. We eat a lot of wraps but sometimes we don't eat them fast enough and they get a little dry and then they don't wrap properly. When I get like this I turn them into chips to eat with hummus, or salsa or chilli.

Cut your wraps into triangles. Arrange on a baking sheet (I always put parchment paper down first) and bake at 350 for about 8 minutes. Turn them over and bake for an additional 6 minutes or until they are golden brown. Serve.

I have never seasoned these but I'm sure you could brush them with Olive Oil and sprinkle sea salt on them for a little splash of flavour.

Click Here