White Bean & Quinoa Chili

In case you have never seen quinoa before, I wanted to give you a visual reference. Pronounced KEEN-wah, this yummy whole grain is actually a seed from a type of grass. It has a light texture and almost nutty flavor and can be used in place of grains such as rice and cous cous. It is a complete protein and a good source of fiber, magnesium, vitamin E, and potassium. In one word it is AWESOME.

My chili tonight was supposed to have black beans in it, but I did not take a bag (that I had cooked and frozen) out beforehand, so I used white beans (which I had just cooked yesterday). I liked this and thought it was a great meal. We were supposed to have a veggie to go with it on the side, but we were hungry and I figured we would be OK :)

White Bean & Quinoa Chili

1 cup quinoa - $1.25

2 cups chicken stock (you could use water) - $0.00

onion, diced - $0.50

2 organic carrots, diced - $0.20 (guessing...I'm not doing the math :) )

32 ounces organic diced tomatoes - $2.78

4 cups white beans - $0.75

chili powder, oregano, red pepper flakes, cayenne, pepper, cumin, garlic powder to taste - $0.50

1. Mix stock and quinoa in a pot. Bring to boil, lower heat, let simmer 15 minutes or until stock absorbed. Or use your rice cooker :)

2. Meanwhile, saute onion and carrots in a little bit of water.

3. Mix in rest of ingredients (including quinoa when done) and bring to simmer for as long as you can stand to wait.

Total Cost - $5.98 for 6 servings