Dinner: Meaty, Meat-less Chili

This recipe includes superfoods such as:

Cinnamon, Sunflower Seeds

Health benefits of Meaty, Meat-less Chili

Cinnamon is one of the best ingredients that someone with insulin sensitivity can eat. Half a teaspoon of cinnamon per day has been shown to be very effective at normalizing blood sugar levels. Cinnamon contains hydroxychalcone, which is thought to enhance the effects of insulin. It has also been suggested that Cinnamon prevents post-meal blood sugar spikes by slowing the gastric emptying rate - meaning that food digests slowly. (Reference: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11506060). Sunflower seeds are an excellent food for PCOS as they are packed with vitamin B2 (riboflavin) and vitamin B6 (pyridoxine). Just one cup of sunflower seeds provides 30% of the recommended daily intake for vitamin B6. Sunflower seeds are also loaded with two other important of PCOS busting minerals: zinc and magnesium.

Ingredients

3 medium ancho chiles
1 quart vegetable or chicken stock-in-a-box
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
8 portabella caps, wiped clean, gills scraped, chopped
4 large cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 large onion, chopped
1 green or red chile, thinly sliced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
A scant palmful smoked paprika
A scant palmful cumin
A scant palmful coriander
Pinch ground cinnamon
2 (15-ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (15-ounce) can fire-roasted diced or crushed tomatoes
1 ripe avocado
1 cup sour cream
Juice of 1 lime
A handful fresh cilantro or fresh parsley
Toasted pepitas or sunflower seeds for garnish, optional
Tortilla chips, 2 (1-ounce) bags or couple handfuls, optional

Instructions

Stem and seed the ancho chiles and place in a pot with stock, bring the mixture to a boil then reduce the heat and keep warm.
Heat a Dutch oven over medium-high heat with 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, 4 turns of the pan. Add the mushrooms to the hot oil and brown 12 to 15 minutes, then add the garlic, onions, chile, salt and black pepper and soften 5 to 6 minutes more, season with a spice mixture of paprika, cumin, coriander, and cinnamon.
Puree the reconstituted chiles and stock in a food processor. Add the chile stock mixture, beans, and tomatoes to the chili, cook 15 minutes until thickened, then turn off the heat, cool, cover and chill for make-ahead meal.
To reheat: Cover the chili and place over medium to medium-high heat, stirring frequently until the chili bubbles, then uncover and simmer until ready to serve.
Combine the avocado, sour cream, lime juice, cilantro, and salt in food processor and process into a smooth avocado-sour cream sauce for stirring into the chili. Serve the chili in shallow bowls and garnish with the avocado sauce, pepitas, if using, and a few tortilla chips, if using.

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