Vegetable Beef Chili (or Vegetatarian Chili without Beef)

I like a good bowl of chili. I've always made it with ground beef and red kidney beans. My friend Kristy, recently gave me a vegetarian chili recipe for the crock pot, that sounded delicious! Her recipe called for soy crumbles, but I chose to use ground beef. Partially because I couldn't find the soy crumbles when I was grocery shopping. But you can use either. It was delicious! I love the addition of vegetables and the flavor.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup olive oil
4 bell peppers, seeded and chopped (any color, fresh or frozen)
2 cups frozen mixed vegetables or peas
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound of ground beef OR 1 package soy crumbles
4 cans of any beans, drained and rinsed
2 (28oz) cans crushed tomatoes
1 to 2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
1 to 2 teaspoons ground cumin
6 Tablespoons chili powder OR 1 Tablespoon of cayenne pepper for a nice kick
1 to 2 Tablespoons dried oregano
2 Tablespoons distilled white vinegar

Directions:
1. Brown ground beef in large skillet, drain and set aside.
2. Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat.
3. Add green peppers, mixed vegetables and garlic. Cook and stir until vegetables are slightly browned and tender (approximately 7-8 minutes). If using soy crumbles instead of ground beef, add to skillet with vegetables.
4. Pour beans into crock pot and set on LOW. Stir in vegetables and ground beef (or soy) mixture and tomatoes.
5. Season with salt, pepper, cumin, chili powder (or cayenne pepper), oregano and vinegar.
6. Cook on LOW for 6-8 hours.

Thanks for the great recipe Kristy! You were right, this is easy, healthy and delicious! Enjoy.