Lentil Chili with Pumpkin and Butternut Squash

With the cool fall temperatures comes the need for nice hot dinner recipes. A take on a classic, this plant-based lentil chili is delicious. Adding the pumpkin and butternut squash puree make it perfect for fall.

Not only is this plant-based lentil chili delicious, but it is packed with nutrients and vitamins. The lentils are a great source of plant-based protein, while both pumpkin and butternut squash are high in antioxidants, vitamin A and vitamin C. Being that we are quickly approaching cold and flu season, getting adequate vitamin C is essential. This recipe goes great over rice, quinoa, or by itself! It goes great with home-made, plant-based corn bread. 

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Helpful Tips

We first cooked the lentils in our instant pot. Anytime we make beans/legumes, we make them in the instant pot, it has been amazing. It is super quick and very easy. If you don’t have an instant pot, you can cook the lentils on the stove top. Add the 1 lb of lentils to about 5 cups of water, let cook until the lentils are soft.

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For the pureed veggies: 

A few months back we pureed many different veggies. This included butternut squash, carrots, peppers, (instant hot sauce) and pumpkin. Then, we poured them into ice cube trays and froze. Now we have bags a perfectly measured out pureed veggies, which makes adding them to recipes so much easier!

Print

Lentil Chili with Pumpkin and Butternut Squash

Course Dinner

Cuisine Plant-Based, Vegan

Keyword chili, lentil chili, lentils, plant-based dinner, pumpkin

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 40 minutes

Servings 6

Ingredients

• 1 lbs lentils
• 1 cup pureed pumpkin
• 1/2 cup pureed carrots
• 1/2 cup pureed butternut squash
• 1 15 oz can tomato sauce
• 1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
• 5 cups vegetable stock or water
• 1 onion
• 1 bell pepper
• 2 pressed garlic cloves
• 1/2 cup chopped parsley
• 2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp ginger
• 2 heaping tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
• pinch of cayenne pepper
• a few drops of Louisiana hot sauce

Instructions

1. If using an instapot, add lentils and just enough water to cover them. Cook for about 10 minutes. 

2. While the lentils are cooking, add chopped bell pepper and onion to a large stew pot. Let cook on medium, adding water as needed so they do not stick to the pot.

3. Once the pepper and onion are soft, add pumpkin, butternut squash, and carrot puree as well as the tomato sauce and diced tomatoes to form your base.

4. Add the vegetable stock, using more or less to get the consistency to your liking. Add salt, ginger, chili powder, black pepper, cumin, smoked paprika, cayenne pepper, garlic cloves, parsley, and hot sauce. Let simmer for about 5 minutes.

5.  Add the lentils to your pot and stir to combine.

6. Serve over rice, quinoa, or by itself.

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