Cooking for a picky crowd

A few months ago I was presented with a challenge- to make dinner for a group of people with different dietary restrictions. I needed to come up with a vegetarian, gluten free, nut free, raw vegetable free, kosher style, and dairy free dish that actually tasted good. I was cooking for about 10 people, so it needed to be cheap and easy to produce in mass quantities. My answer was black bean vegetarian chili. It fit all the requirements, is simple to make and can easily be doubled.

2 tablespoons Vegetable Oil

1 onion

1 red pepper

1 orange or yellow pepper

2 fresh jalapeno peppers, seeded (optional)

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoons Paprika

1 teaspoon Oregano

1/2 teaspoon Cayenne pepper

1/2 teaspoon Salt

1/2 teaspoon Cumin

1 14 ounce can diced tomatoes

1 can black beans, drained

1 can corn, drained

sour cream

grated cheddar cheese

avocado on the side.

1. Dice onions, seed and chop peppers, and mince garlic. (A food processor does this very quickly and easily, but you do lose some consistency.)

2. Mix spices together in a small prep bowl .

3. Heat pot at medium high heat. Saute onion , garlic and peppers until onions are clear.

4. Add tomatoes, black beans and spices. Turn down heat to low and simmer slowly for about 30-40 minutes. Stir occasionally.

5. Add in drained corn and continue to cook slowly for another 20 minutes.

If too thick, add water for desired consistency.

Top with sour cream, cheddar cheese and a slice of avocado.

Next time you are cooking for a crowd, consider making vegetarian chili. It satisfies everyone's needs and tastes good too.

-Natasha