Hominy Stew

I got this recipe from a friend of a friend, who invited us over for an all girls New Year's Eve party a few years ago. It's very filling and delicious.

1 big onion...I used purple
"lots of butter" (or olive oil)...about 1/4 cup
a few cloves of garlic
zucchini 1 or 2
1 chopped up jalapeno (lose the seeds)
salt (about 1/2 tsp)
bunch of cilantro (I skip this)
chili powder (I put about 1/8 cup)
4 cans of hominy (about 60 oz total)
cheddar or other shredded cheese

Chop the onion and garlic, saute in butter/oil, and throw in the zucchini. Throw in the rest. Simmer for 5 or 10 minutes. Open up the cans, pour off about 1/2 the water, and dump it in. Heat on the stove for about 20 minutes until boiling. either stir in grated cheese or sprinkle on top.

Vegetarian Chili

I have made this recipe many, many times and it is super good. One of my old roommates joked that she was going to stage an intervention if I cooked it one more time. Guests always seemed to enjoy it too. The picture at right is the batch I made tonight, all stacked up in my snapware for lunch next week.

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 medium onion, chopped
2 bay leaves
2 tablespoons dried oregano
1 tablespoon salt
2 green bell peppers, chopped
2 jalapeno peppers, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
2 (4 ounce) cans chopped green chile peppers, drained (optional, but tasty)
3 (28 ounce) cans whole peeled tomatoes, crushed
1/4 cup chili powder (to taste --- I like lots)
1 tablespoon ground black pepper (I forget to add this sometimes and it's still good)
1 (15 ounce) can kidney beans, drained
1 (15 ounce) can garbanzo beans, drained
1 (15 ounce) can black beans (choose whatever beans you like)
1 (15 ounce) can whole kernel corn

DIRECTIONS
Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Stir in the onion, and season with bay leaves, cumin, oregano, and salt. Cook and stir until onion is tender, then mix in the green bell peppers, jalapeno peppers, garlic, and green chile peppers. Reduce heat to low, cover pot, and simmer 5 minutes.
Mix the tomatoes into the pot. Season chili with chili powder and pepper. Stir in the kidney beans, garbanzo beans, and black beans. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer 45 minutes. Stir in the corn, and continue cooking 5 minutes before serving.

I like to serve it with a little dollop of sour cream on top and a sprinkle of shredded cheese.