Meaty Mushroom Chili

Since our two daughters did not like beans in their chili, I adapted a recipe to suit our whole family’s tastes. We all agree that mushrooms are an appealing alternative.

—Marjol Burr, Catawba, OH

Prep: 5 min. • Cook: 70 min. • Makes: 8 servings

• 1 lb. bulk Italian sausage
• 1 lb. ground beef
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 lb. fresh mushrooms, sliced
• 1 can (46 oz.) V8 juice
• 1 can (6 oz.) tomato paste
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 tsp. dried oregano
• ½ tsp. dried basil
• ½ tsp. pepper
• Optional: Sour cream and thinly sliced green onions

In a Dutch oven, cook the sausage, beef and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in the mushrooms, V8 juice, tomato paste, sugar, Worcestershire sauce and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 1 hour. If desired, top with the sour cream and green onions.

1 cup: 364 cal., 23g fat (9g sat. fat), 71mg chol., 1189mg sod., 17g carb. (11g sugars, 3g fiber), 21g pro.

TIP

The V8 vegetable juice adds a boost of flavor to this hearty chili, but feel free to replace it with tomato juice if you’d like.