Sweet Potato, Black Bean and Chicken Chili....it was almost vegetarian

This recipe turned out to be a really hearty and filling chili. I started out attempting to make a vegetarian version and then thought nah, needs chicken. And viola here we are. While this may take a little longer than the average recipe I post, it was delicious and totally worth the extra bit of time. Feel free to leave the chicken out if you would like to keep it vegetarian, or even change around the ingredients to better suit your own tastes. **Added bonus we were able to eat this for four days, so you can have a few days off from the kitchen** You are going to need:

2 large sweet potatoes

1/2 teaspoon chipotle pepper (Ground, chopped whatever you like. I used ground personally.)

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 onion (As usual I used yellow, but you can use whatever suits your fancy.)

4 cloves minced garlic

1 red bell pepper

1 green bell pepper, diced (If you prefer more heat you can swap this out for jalapeno.)

1 tablespoon cumin

2-3 tablespoons chili powder (Whichever kind you like. I personally did a little bit of both ancho and red.)

1/4 teaspoon dried oregano

1 28oz can diced or crushed tomatoes

1 cup water

1 tablespoon cornmeal

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder

2 cans black beans (rinsed and dried)

3 cooked chicken breasts (I just salt and pepper seasoned mine and cooked it in a cast iron. You can keep it this simple, or even buy a rotisserie chicken and just add it in.)

Before you get into the cooking part if this recipe, I highly suggest you prep first. Dice the sweet potatoes, bell peppers and onion. Mince your garlic, drain and rinse your black beans. I did not do all those things first and things got a little messy in my work-space. I had to scramble and my beer got warm, not pleased!But I digress, back to the recipe...

To keep your sweet potatoes from turning into mush, the secret is to roast them first. This will keep help to keep their texture and shape. Dice your potato into whatever size you like, then season with the chipolte pepper, salt and olive oil. Coat evenly and roast in a 400-degree oven for about 20-25 minutes.

Next in your dutch oven (or stockpot, but really if you don't own a dutch oven you should get one. They are AMAZING.) Add olive oil, onion, garlic, red bell pepper and green bell pepper or jalapeno. (Or both, this your chili and you make it how you want to dammit.) Turn your heat up to medium, give it a good mix. Next add cumin, ancho chili powder and dried oregano. Make sure to get everything combined and saute for about 5-7 minutes. If your garlic and onions start to brown turn the heat back down to low, you don't want this to over cook and risk the garlic getting bitter.

Now it's time to add your tomatoes and one cup of water. Give everything a mix and turn the heat up to high. At this point you want everything to come to a simmer. Next add in the sugar, salt and cornmeal. **Someone on Instagram asked me why cornmeal, this is to give everything a really nice texture and body.** And now it's time for the extra special secret ingredient (that you really should be adding to all your chili) the unsweetened cocoa. I have no clue on the science or why it makes chili taste so good...it just does!

Adjust the heat to medium/high and let the chili simmer for about 30 minutes. You want to make sure the surface stays at a low bubble. As everything combines the color will darken and the chili will start to thicken. After 30 minutes you can add in your black beans. (Make sure they are fully rinsed and dried!) And please...pretty please...buy the more expensive can of beans (or make your own) If you go for the cheap beans they will fall apart. Then you can add in your chicken and the roasted sweet potatoes. At this point you will want to evaluate your water level, more than likely you will have to add a bit more. Now all that's left to do is let the chili simmer on medium/high heat for another 15 minutes. Stir occasionally and also taste test for seasoning. You may want to add a bit more salt or a bit more heat, it's all up to you!

And now its time to enjoy! This was seriously delicious, and super easy to customize as well. Give it a try, and remember...chili ALWAYS pairs well with a really nice lager and cornbread.