I went to visit my family and boyfriend last week and I just got back home yesterday. I can finally cook whatever I like whenever... however... with whatever (I buy..). I have a hard time eating in other people's houses because as much as they try to feed me and give me great vegan snacks (like animal crackers, and these amazingly delicious blueberry almond rice pops) I still need substance and meals surprisingly...

However, my dear and loving and incredible boyfriend tends not to have any spices or... food for that matter and we had to go to the grocery store to get some potatoes, onions, tomatoes, and beans. (I still forgot the spices.... yikes).

I decided to make something simple.. that would be hearty and filling and satisfying. I love chili and I love potatoes. So chili was my decision!! 

I began by cutting up the onions (I got pearl onions because I think they are cute..) and I sauteed them in a pan over medium heat with some olive oil. At this point I would throw in some spices. My favorites to use in chili are cinnamon, chili powder, and coriander. I got a jalapeno instead to make up for the lack of spice and add a nice kick. So, I diced the jalapeno and threw it in to saute with the onions. As that was happening I chopped up the potatoes and started throwing them in. I did kind of burn my onions a bit, but in the end I will chock it up to being necessary for another level of flavor.

The beans are next! I opened... drained.. and dumped half of each can of beans into the pot and stirred everything around a bit and then poured enough stock to cover everything. Stock is important for this dish because the flavors within the stock get absorbed into the potatoes and add incredibly to the dish.

Then, I put the lid onto the pot leaving a bit of space to let the steam escape. Lowering the flame I let it sit until the water was mostly evaporated at which point I mixed in chopped tomatoes and spinach.