A big pot of chili

Tonight I made a great winter meal, vegetarian chili. I've made this recipe from Joy of Cooking numerous times and it never disappoints. I actually doubled the recipe, yielding an abundance of chili to share with friends on game night as well as to freeze for later consumption.

Vegetarian Chili (8 servings)
Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a large saucepan (or stockpot if doubling) over medium heat.
Add:
1 cup chopped carrots
1 cup chopped red bell peppers (I used half red, half yellow)
1 cup chopped green bell peppers
1 cup chopped onions
2 cloves garlic, minced
Cook, stirring, until onions are golden (~15 min) then add:
1-2 finely chopped fresh green chiles (to taste)
1 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp ground cumin
Cook, stirring, ~2 min then add:
1 28oz can plum tomatoes with juice (chopped)
1 160z can red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 16oz can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1 160z can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup tomato juice
Salt to taste
Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer uncovered for ~45 minutes adding more tomato juice or water as needed.

I also made corn bread muffins to go with the chili (half plain, half with jalapeno and cheddar per Mike's request) and we had sour cream, cheese, jalapenos and onions as chili toppings.

Northern Corn Bread (also from Joy of Cooking)
1 1/4 cup cornmeal
3/4 cup flour
1-4 tbsp sugar (I used only one)
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 large eggs
2/3 cup milk
2/3 cup buttermilk
2-3 tbsp melted butter

Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl. Combine in a separate bowl eggs and milk. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir just until moistened. Fold in melted butter and pour batter in greased muffin pan. Bake 10-15 minutes at 425F. (For cheddar jalapeno corn muffins, simply add chopped jalapeno to the batter and sprinkle cheddar on top before baking.)

Despite a house full of guests, my freezer is literally overflowing with leftover chili (surely enough to get me through the winter).