It's chili out there!

In this weather, can you blame us for wanting a little lunchtime comfort? Cold lettuce doesn't cut it sometimes, so Laura brought in an insanely delicious chili today to put meat on our bones and hair on our chests. It may have tasted sinful, but it's healthy, I swear: nothing but a truckload of veggies, the way she made it. See below for the recipe to spicy success.

• 1 large Spanish onion
• 4 peppers (red, yellow, orange, green)
• 2 zucchini (green or yellow)
• 5 fresh tomatoes
• 1 jar tomato puree
• 1 bag black beans
• 1 bag red kidney beans
• 1 bag frozen corn
• fresh bundles of basil, cilantro and dill
• cumin
• chili powder
• 1 clove garlic
• chili flakes
• cayenne pepper
• red wine
• dark chocolate and two chicken breasts (for non-veggie version)

Soak your beans the night before and defrost the corn niblets. Dice the onion and pop it into a stove-top Dutch oven on medium heat. Top with a generous pour of olive oil and a dash of cayenne pepper. Chop peppers and zucchini into 2-inch pieces and set aside. Mince one garlic clove and add to the onions. When the onions are looking sautéed, add peppers, zucchini, a cup of red wine, one tablespoon of cumin and chili powder. Cover and let simmer for 20 minutes. When the vegetables have softened, add the diced fresh tomatoes and purée with 3 tablespoons of chili powder and 2 tablespoons of cumin. Sprinkle one tablespoon of chili flakes overtop and stir well before letting simmer for 30 minutes. Add corn, beans and three-quarters of the minced herbs. Optional: Add pulled chicken breast (2 baked breasts pulled apart into narrow pieces) and a cup of finely grated dark chocolate. Stir well and leave on med-low for 1-3 hours (as long as possible, really). Keep checking back every hour to stir. Add the remaining herbs just before serving. Top with jalapeno havarti, a dollop of sour cream, spring onions and serve.