We love to eat hearty meals when it gets cold – they warm us

up from the inside out and keep our ENERGY high. Many times, hearty meals can also be full of unhealthy creams and fats, so you have to watch out for this at restaurants.

If meals are unhealthy, they’ll drain your energy. Your body will have to send a large supply of the blood from your body to your stomach to work on digesting the heavy meal—and it will be there for hours. It will leave your brain and muscles without the blood and oxygen they crave for energy. Don’t let this happen to you! Make one of our favorite winter recipes…

It’s is vegetarian chili. It’s so versatile – you can eat it on its own; as a garnish on quinoa, rice, pasta, or whatever your favorite grain is; make it into a breakfast scramble with eggs and potatoes; top a baked potato with it (this is also good because it eliminates the typical high-fat baked potato topping); make it into a sandwich… The options are endless! Here’s one of our favorite recipes, adapted from cookinglight.com.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 2 cups chopped onion
• 1/2 cup chopped yellow bell pepper
• 1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 2 (16-ounce) cans stewed tomatoes, undrained
• 2 (15-ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 (15-ounce) can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 (15-ounce) can pinto beans, rinsed and drained

Directions

1. Heat oil in a large saucepot over medium-high heat.
2. Add onion, bell peppers, and garlic. Sauté for 5 minutes or until translucent and tender.
3. Add all of the remaining ingredients – sugar, spices, tomatoes, and beans. Bring to a boil.
4. Reduce to a simmer. Let simmer for about 30 minutes

*image from myrecipes.com