Daring Cooks: Black Bean & Espresso Chili

Our April 2012 Daring Cooks hosts were David & Karen from Twenty-Fingered Cooking. They presented us with a very daring and unique challenge of forming our own recipes by using a set list of ingredients!

With an onslaught of schoolwork lately and being in Portugal last week, I didn't think I was going to have time to do this challenge. I was really excited about it though, especially since goat cheese was one of the ingredients. During class I was surfing the web, instead of listening and came across a recipe similar to the one here. The recipe was a great starting point and the weather has been on the colder side, perfect for chili.


This was the ingredient list. We had to pick one thing from each list:
List 1: Parsnips, Eggplant (aubergine), Cauliflower
List 2: Balsamic Vinegar, Goat Cheese, Chipotle peppers
List 3: Maple Syrup, Instant Coffee, Bananas

I added both the chipotle peppers and chili powder. The result had a in your face spice. If you are not a spice lover pick to add either the chili powder or chipotle peppers. I recommend using the chipotle peppers for their smoking flavor. The coffee adds a rich depth of flavor to the end product. The chocolate gives this a Mexican mole flavor. The dish is spicy and rich, with a wonderful Mexican flair to it.


xo


April


Ingredients:
Olive oil
2 medium onions, diced
3 medium parsnips, sliced 1/4 inch thick
4 medium cloves of garlic, minced
4 chipotle peppers in adobo, finely chopped or 1 teaspoon chili powder (or add both)
1 teaspoon oregano
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons instant espresso
2 cups water
1 x 28 ounce can crushed tomatoes
1 generous tablespoon of unsweetend cocoa powder
1 teaspoon honey
1 x 15 ounce can black beans
1 x 15 ounce red kidney beans
Instructions:

1. In a large heavy bottomed pan (I used a dutch oven), heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat and add the onions. Cook the onions for 8-10 minutes or until soft and translucent. Add the parsnips to the pan and cook for 5 minutes. 
2. Have all of you spices and water on hand and ready at this point. Add the garlic, chipotle peppers, oregano, cumin, cinnamon and instant espresso to the parsnip and onion mixture, cooking and stirring for a minute. Add the water and crushed tomatoes, bringing it to a simmer. Continue to simmer for 30-40 minutes, covered, until the parsnips are cooked. In the last 15 minutes of cooking, add the cocoa powder, honey and beans to the pan and finish cooking.
3. Serve with sour cream on top, goat cheese, crackers or whatever else you like.