Pumpkin Chili

Ingredients:

1 medium sweet onion, chopped

1 medium sweet yellow pepper, chopped

1 tablespoons olive oil3 garlic cloves, minced (I used 3 tablespoons raw minced garlic)

3 cups of chicken broth (make sure there it's 99% fat free & no MSG)

1 can (15 oz) black beans, rinsed & drained

1 can (15 oz) solid-pack pumpkin

1/2 lb extra lean ground beef

1/4-1/2 lb Italian turkey sausage

1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes, undrained

1 pkg "Darn Good Chili" mix - follow directions to prepare basic recipe (3 cups water to boil, whisk in 4 oz tomato paste & chili mix, simmer)

2-3 teaspoons McCormick Cocoa Chile Blend

1 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1-2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (omit if you don't want it hot!)



Directions:

1. Prepare "Darn Good Chili" mix per instructions, place in crock pot when finished.

2.  In a large skillet, saute onion & yellow pepper in olive oil until tender.  Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer.  Transfer to slow cooker/crock pot.

3.  Add tomatoes, beans & pumpkin to slow cooker/crock pot, mix well.

4.  Mix turkey sausage & beef together until well blended - salt lightly while cooking.  Cook in skillet, drain and transfer to slow cooker/crock pot.

5.  Add seasonings to chili ingredients in slow cooker/crock pot.

6.  Cook on "low" for 4-5 hours or until heated through.

 Basically, you can use whatever spices/seasonings you want depending on the flavor and how hot you want to make it.  The pumpkin really thickens the chili and adds a nice, smooth texture.