Chili is my best friend

As I've said before, giving up fall baking is really hard for me. Luckily there is another fall food tradition that I don't have to give up. It's chili/soup season! I know you have to be careful with some soups, but most of them can be a really healthy dinner. They are packed with a good balance of veggies and protein, and they fill up your tummy without a ton of calories.

My favorite soups are the ones I can make in the slow cooker. There is this magical hour (sometimes 2 if I'm lucky) in the morning when both my babies are napping. This doesn't happen for the rest of the day, so if I can get dinner prepped during that hour it's a huge bonus.

I love chili. I don't always make it in the slow cooker, because I can do it pretty quick on the stove if I need to. But why cook dinner at dinner time when I'm already hungry if I can do it in the morning and eat when I'm hungry? I don't really have a go-to recipe for chili. I just kind of throw together whatever meat/beans/veggies/spices happen to be around and strike my fancy. I do usually season my chili with taco seasoning, because then I don't have to guess what spices and how much to put in there. Every time I make chili it is one of a kind. Except when I make my family recipe white chicken chili. But I don't think that particular recipe is especially healthy so I save it for... some other time when I'm not in a competition to lose as much weight as possible :)

Here's a relatively quick 1 serving chili recipe that I kind of based my giant pot of chili on today:

Saute your favorite vegetables (such as garlic, onion, bell pepper, celery) and spices in 1 t oil.
Add in 3 oz 95% lean ground beef and cook through.
Stir in 1/2 can diced tomatoes with all its juice and 1/4 c each of cooked black beans, pinto beans, and kidney beans.
Stir together and cook until bubbly.
Top with 1 oz (1/4 c) shredded low fat cheddar cheese.