As sunlight gets increasingly shorter with each day that passes, and the temperature drops more every single day, there’s nothing like a cosy warm meal to heal your cold and aching body after a day hunched over a desk. And my healing meal is my mum’s veggie chilli.

Both my mum and I are vegetarian now, but for as long as I can remember, she has been making her staple veggie chilli. It’s a meal that goes down well with everyone, vegetarians and meat-eaters alike. Although it’s very simple, it has all the warming, hearty qualities that most autumn and winter meals tend to have, and I leave the dinner table feeling full and happy.

All you need to make this recipe is a bag of veggie mince, two bell peppers (1 red, 1 green), mushrooms (however much you like), 1 onion, fresh chillies, tomato purée, 2-3 tins of plum tomatoes, a tin of kidney beans, a tin of baked beans and a veggie stock cube. To serve, we usually just have cottage cheese and grated cheese.

Firstly, fry up the onion with some spray oil in a pan. Add the two bell peppers, the fresh chillies and the mushrooms. Fry until softened on a low heat.

Next add the tins of plum tomatoes into the pan, and season to taste (with black pepper, basil, and sprinkle on a veggie stock cube).

Then, add the quorn mince and stir in the kidney beans and baked beans. Your pan should be looking and smelling amazing by now.

Lastly, put a few quirts of tomato purée in the pan.

Leave it all on a low heat to simmer for around 45 minutes to an hour.

Serve it up with either rice or a jacket potato, with cottage cheese, grated cheddar and whatever else takes your fancy. Enjoy!

Image courtesy of Visual Stories