It's March. It was forecast to be 68 today, snow tomorrow. So, even though we're anxious for asparagus and strawberries, we still need something warm and cozy to nourish us through the storm. This hearty meal does the trick. Obviously this is a really good food storage recipe. You can tell by my dusty lids that most of the cans came from storage! :)

Vegetarian Chipotle Three-Bean Stew

Dave Lieberman, Young & Hungry

Makes 12-15 healthy servings (This makes a ton! After three adults and two kids dined on this recipe, I had three quarts left over! Freeze some for another meal or feed the masses!)

Serve with Corn Bread (Oooo! I'll have to put that recipe up soon!)

¼ c extra-virgin olive oil (extra light)

2 medium onions, diced (You'll notice I used one huge Vidalia onion.)

One 1 lb bag “baby-cut” carrots (I think those are too big for one bite. I could cut them up, but I'd rather just peel some carrots and cut them into big chunks.)

5-6 garlic cloves, pressed (I always have bottled minced garlic in the fridge. I really prefer using that because sometimes the quality of the fresh garlic is not so great.)

One 26 oz can chopped tomatoes (Since the kiddies don't like chunks of tomatoes in their food, I pour the tomatoes into a jar and puree them using a stick blender.)

Two 15 oz cans pinto beans

Two 15 oz cans red beans (kidney)

One 15 oz can pink beans (white)

Two 15 oz cans vegetable broth

One 12 oz can dark beer (ginger ale)

4 canned chipotle chilies packed in adobo sauce, finely chopped almost to a puree, plus 2 tablespoons of the adobo sauce (I only use the 2 tablespoons of sauce. Then I remove all the peppers, pour the rest of the sauce in a jar and freeze that for future use.)

1 teaspoon salt

The next ingredients are added near the end of the process!

One 11 oz can sodium-free whole kernel corn (I usually only have regular corn.)

1 small bunch Italian parsley, roughly chopped (I usually use dried.)

Heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Stir in the onions and cook, stirring until they start to turn translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the carrots and garlic, and cook for a few minutes. Strain and rinse the beans. Add them and all the remaining ingredients except the corn and parsley. Add enough water to cover ingredients by an inch or two, about 2 cups. Bring to a boil and then adjust the heat so the liquid is simmering. Simmer for about 1 hour, until the chili has reduced and thickened and the beans are barely covered by liquid. Stir in the corn and parsley, and turn off the heat.

You can make this up to a few days in advance without adding the corn and parsley. Keep it in the fridge and the flavors will really develop, and the chili will taste even more amazing. Just remember that before you put it into the fridge for storage, it needs to come to room temperature—at least a few hours of sitting after it has finished cooking.