I made some chili. People generally liked it, and were interested in the recipe, so here it is.

Derived from a recipe on Oh She Glows, in turn adapted from Maintenance with Ashley.

The spices are pretty flexible.

• 1 tbsp oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced (or just some minced garlic)
• 1 orange bell pepper, chopped
• 1 poblano pepper, chopped
• 1 sweet onion, chopped
• 1 shallot, chopped
• Some chopped carrot
• Cumin
• Chili powder (lots of it)
• Salt
• Dash of cayenne
• Some Mexican oregano
• Grains of Paradise
• Beans — more on this below
• 1 large but not industrial can diced tomatoes with juice
• 2–3 baby bella mushrooms, cut up
• 1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
• Squirt of lime juice
• 1C vegetable stock

For beans, I usually use kidney, black, and either canellini (white kidney) or navy beans. Kidney beans are the bulk. You can add others at will. With this recipe, I use about 2 pounds of dry beans or 5–7 cans of beans in an 8qt crock pot.

Sauté garlic, onion, peppers, carrot, and spices in oil for about 5 minutes.

Put everything in a crock pot on high for about 4-5 hours. Stir from time to time. Check seasoning 30–60 minutes before serving.

Squirting in some siracha before eating is very tasty.