Vegetarian/Vegan Chili

Before the word vegan scares you away, let me explain.  This is only vegan because chili generally never has dairy in it to begin with.  All I did was leave meat out of this chili, therefore bypassing the vegetarian label and moving into vegan territory. However, I served mine with cheese and sour cream.  To make this vegan, it'd be great with sliced avocado and red onion on top (or cilantro, if that's your thing. Ew).  This would be great with black beans, but I used kidney and pinto because they're all I had. Whatever type of beans you use, try two different varietals for texture and flavor complexity. The use of mushrooms add a meaty texture to chili, and my secret ingredient, soy chorizo, puts it over-the-top. Don't leave out the soy chorizo! It's incredibly flavorful. I get it from Trader Joe's.

Serves 6-ish. The leftovers are just as tasty, too!

Vegan Chili
1.5 lb mushrooms (use cheap ones, like cremini or button mushrooms. They're there for texture more than flavor, so don't waste your money on expensive 'shrooms)
1 red bell pepper, diced
1/2 green bell pepper, diced
1 large zucchini, diced
1/2 large onion, diced
1 large jalapeno, finely diced (or use two small ones. Remove the seeds if you want it less spicy)
1 Tbs minced garlic
1/2 cup corn
2 Tbs tomato paste
2.5 cups crushed whole tomatoes, with their juice (canned are easiest)
1 package soy chorizo (from Trader Joe's. In the refridgerated section)
1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 Tsp each cumin, chili powder, cayanne. Or just eyeball it. Not sure how much I actually used.
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Dice up mushrooms finely. Sautee over medium heat until all water has evaporated from the 'shrooms, about 20 minutes.
2. Throw all ingredients plus mushrooms into a large crock pot (or large dutch oven over low heat on the stove, or 200 degree oven). Stir. Cover, heat over low for 8 hours.
3. For texture, I like to take an immersion blender and blend a little bit of the mixture.  Alternatively, you could remove about two cups of the chili, blend in a blender, then add back to the pot. I like a thick chili, so removed the lid for the last hour or so to let some of the liquid evaporate.