Fall is in the air, as they say. The green leaves are just beginning to acknowledge the change in seasons along their peripheries; my nose is following suit with incessant sneezes. It’s that wonderfully awkward transitional time when I’m never sure what to wear: shorts now, or a sweater for later? And what do I cook: the last of the tomatoes, or sweet potatoes? We’ll be bundled up in scarves, carving pumpkins and crafting Halloween costumes before we know it. I can’t wait.
Football season seems to be in full swing, too. My old friends are taunting me with photos of game day meals made in the college town I used to call home—let’s be honest, football is really all about the food and beer anyway. Forget standing in crowds at stadiums! Give me a comfortable seat, friends, good food and drinks. The fact that a game is on while I chit-chat is purely secondary.
This butternut squash and black bean chili is just right for fall weather and football games. It strikes that balance between spicy and sweet that I love in Mexican food, like a good mole sauce. Chipotle and chili powder provide ample spice to round off the sweet, seasonal flavor of butternut squash. Top with crispy tortilla strips and plenty of creamy, diced Avocados from Mexico for a hearty meal that will satisfy vegans, carnivores and gluten-free eaters alike. Meals like that aren’t easy to come by, you know?
The chili happens to be super simple to make, too. Once you have your vegetables chopped, your work is almost done. Speaking of which, I’ve done my fair share of cursing at butternut for being difficult to peel and slice, but I didn’t have any trouble when I followed Simply Recipes’ method. I don’t know if it was her method, my trusty y-shaped vegetable peeler or this butternut squash in particular, but it was a breeze. Try it!
- 1 medium red onion, chopped
- 2 red bell peppers, chopped (or equivalent jarred roasted red peppers)
- 1 small butternut squash (less than 1 1/2 pounds), peeled and chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ground sea salt
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2+ tablespoon chopped chipotle in adobo* (start with 1/2 tablespoon and add more to taste, I thought mine was just right with 1 tablespoon)
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 14-ounces canned diced tomatoes, including the liquid**
- 4 cups cooked black beans or 2 cans, rinsed and drained
- 2 cups OR one 14 oz. can vegetable broth
- 2 Avocados from Mexico, diced
- cilantro (optional, for garnish)
- 3 corn tortillas for crispy tortilla strips***
- In a 4 to 6 quart Dutch oven or stockpot, sautée the chopped vegetables (onion, bell pepper, butternut squash, garlic) in one to two tablespoons of olive oil on medium-high heat. You’ll need to stir the ingredients every few minutes so they can cook evenly.
- Once the onions start turning translucent, turn the heat down to medium-low. Add all of the spices and canned ingredients, and stir. Cover for about one hour, stirring occasionally. Taste test for spice level and add more chipotle if desired.
- By the time your chili is done, the butternut squash should be nice and tender and the liquid should have reduced a bit, producing the hearty chili consistency that we all know and love.
- Make the crispy tortilla strips: stack the corn tortillas and slice them into thin little strips, about 2 inches long. Heat a small pan over medium heat, add a drizzle of olive oil and toss in the tortilla slices. Sprinkle with salt and stir. Cook until the strips are crispy and turning golden, stirring occasionally, about 4 to 7 minutes. Remove tortilla strips from skillet and drain on a plate covered with a piece of paper towel.
- Serve the chili in individual bowls, topped with crispy tortilla strips and plenty of diced avocado. I added a little sprinkle of red pepper flakes (optional). You might want to serve this along with some chipotle hot sauce (Tobasco makes one) for the spice addicts like myself.
- Serves 3 to 4. This chili is very hearty, but feel free to add another can of tomatoes or more vegetable broth if you want to thin it out a bit. Double the recipe for a crowd.
- *Chipotle in adobo sauce is usually found in the Mexican section of the grocery store. I never need a whole can at once, so I use what I need and then transfer the rest to a small freezer bag, pressing it flat so that I can pull off as much as I need later.
- **Find BPA-free cans of diced tomatoes if possible.
- ***Look for corn tortillas that contain minimally processed ingredients. There should only be about 5 ingredients listed, and wheat shouldn’t be one of them.
Disclaimer: This is a working partnership with Avocados from Mexico and Muy Bueno Cookbook and I was compensated for recipe development. Opinions expressed are my own, always. The truth is I love avocados!





















94 Comments
Another winner Miss Kathryn. I’m a total nut about anything with Chipotle, then toss in avocados and I’m pretty much cloud 9-ing it.
I made this last night! YUM!! I’d love to invite you to link up at our Gluten Free Fridays recipe party~ The link will be live on Friday, come visit http://www.vegetarianmamma.com
Thanks and I hope that you join us! My family LOVED this recipe!! :)
Made this last week and it turned out awesome. I didn’t put the chipotle in it as I’m not a huge fan of the smoky flavor. I did use fresh Cheyenne peppers that gave it a nice softly spicy flavor to compliment the flavor of the butternut squash. I also used red and black beans instead of straight black – plus I diced and stewed tomatoes from my garden while I was cutting up the squash and added those to the chili. Excellent recipe!
So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Your substitutions sound great.
This was soooo delicious! I served it to company last weekend and they scraped the pot clean, even though one of them usually prefers meat at every meal. My two modifications: I added one extra can of diced tomatoes with green chilies, and served with sour cream. My boyfriend keeps asking “Are you sure there aren’t leftovers?”
Thanks, Julie! Your additions sound great.
I made this tonight. I haven’t tasted it yet, but it smells amazing! The only thing is that I cooked it for as long as you said to, and it only got more watery not less. I added a little bit of cornstarch, which seemed to help. Overall, thanks for the great recipe!
Just wanted to let you know this recipe was amazing! I made it last night and both my partner and I immediately agreed this is a new favorite! He is usually not a huge fan of spicy dishes but went through two bowls of the stuff anyway!
I brought some leftovers to work for lunch and by the time my bowl made its way around the table I barely had enough for myself!
My only alterations… skipped the cumin (he isn’t a fan) and cilantro (didn’t have any) and didn’t simmer it for the full hour (a. I think it was cooked enough – and b. we were too hungry) :)
Thanks!!!
This recipe is unbelievably good…and its one of those dishes that tastes even better the next day heated up after a night in the fridge….just loved it!!
So glad to hear it, Melody!
This was seriously delicious and easy to make. The only changes I made was to add a half-bunch of cilantro (not just use for garnish), serve with tortilla chips, and serve with grated strong cheddar. Thanks for the recipe!
Thanks, Josh! I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe and your substitutions all sound great.
This was a huge football Sunday crowd pleaser! I added a couple of tablespoons of cocoa powder and HIGHLY recommend it!
Yummy! I making this with the chipotle paste in a tube that i just bought here. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0097UW3EK
This sounds yummy and I want to make but was going to try it in a crock pot. Do you think it will work and have any suggestions? Thanks!!
Hi Michele, I’m sorry for the delayed response. I would suggest sautéing the vegetables in a pan on the stove for a few minutes before adding them to the crock pot to bring out their flavors.
I’m doing the Daniel Fast…started January 1st….and on a whim bought the prechopped butternut squash at our local Walmart thinking I could figure out something to do with it.
So, one morning, when packing my lunch, I grabbed romaine, butternut squash, avocado, cucumber, and balsamic dressing. When combined I decided that I LOVED avocado and butternut squash together. Went to Google. Popped those two ingrediets into a search, and Voila….I ended up here! I made this recipe on Saturday, fed my Mom, fed myself, fed a friend at work, and fed myself half a dozen more times! This chili is AMAZING. Some things I did differently, just based on preference, was I used green pepper, and some hot red chili peppers, chipotle chili powder, about double the amount of cumin, (omitted the cinnamon, because I totally forgot), and used a 29 ounce can of diced tomatoes. This is a Daniel Fast approved recipe (minus the tortillas crisps) and was the most flavorful thing I have eaten in a while. I have not only kept this recipe, but I have given it out to many in the course of the last few days. Thank you for posting! I have a new favorite chili recipe!
Carrie, I’m so glad you enjoyed the chili recipe and made it work for you! I do love avocado and butternut together, yum.
Totally love it. Been wanting to make vegan chilly for a long time now. Thank u. Admire all the effort u put in the website.
Thank you, Kavita.
I made this for the staff appreciation lunch at my daughter’s high school. It was the veggie favorite! I did add more chipotle because we like heat in the southwest. Thank you Kavita!
Sharon, I’m so glad my chili was a hit at your staff appreciation lunch! Woohoo!
Just finished making this. It was fantastic! I can’t wait to eat the leftovers!
This chili was uh-mazing! The squash was fantastic, and the saucy part of the chili equally delicious. It’ll be our lunch today & we can’t wait. Thank you!
So glad you enjoyed the chili, Jessica!