Awesome with Sprinkles

Crockpot Pumpkin Chili

Heidi

Howdy friends! I hope that you had an awesome evening of trick-or-treating last night! We did! Now we’re winding down from all the Halloween hubbub (and recovering from our sugar rushes) and getting ready to gear up for the holidays! I don’t know what it is but I am extra super excited for the holiday season this year! How about you?

With the holidays comes the hustle and bustle of the season. Filled with holiday parties and social engagements, Christmas shopping, gift wrapping, guest room prepping, tree trimming, decorating, stringing up lights, cookie making, crafting and other various decking of the halls…my calendar looks like a technicolor rainbow exploded on it!

At the end of the day often times I am too busy (or too tired!) to even think about making dinner. That’s where some easy crockpot recipes are the true heroes of the holiday season!

This crockpot pumpkin chili is my fall/winter go-to chili recipe. It is easy to toss together and is packed with flavor and texture! I don’t know about you, but I like my chili chunky and full of meat and this chili delivers!

Just toss everything into a pot, forget about it for a few hours and come back to this:

A warm, yummy bowl full of goodness ready for devouring. This pumpkin chili packs a generous helping of meat, beans and chunks of pumpkin into each bite. It has a little bit of a spicy kick to it and you can easily adjust the seasoning to your liking if you like more or less spice.

What really sets this pumpkin chili apart from others I have tried is that it not only contains pumpkin puree, but also hearty chunks of fresh pumpkin! Yum! You can also sub the pumpkin for butternut squash, which is often easier to find than pie pumpkins suitable for eating. Most grocery stores are starting to carry bags of pre-cut butternut squash as well, which makes your life even that much easier!

This recipe makes a heaping crockpot full of chili, so it’s perfect for Sunday night football gatherings. I like to freeze the leftovers to have on hand for other busy nights throughout the month.

I almost always make a big pot of this pumpkin chili for Halloween night (though this year I made this harvest pumpkin soup instead) so that there is no fussing with dinner while getting ready for trick-or-treaters.

Serve with a dollop of sour cream (or shredded cheese) and sprinkle with pepitas for a little extra crunch! You can also serve with corn chips, crackers or my favorite, pumpkin cornbread muffins! So yummy! I really hope you enjoy this pumpkin chili as much as I do!

Crockpot Pumpkin Chili

November 13, 2016

This crockpot pumpkin chili packs a generous helping of meat, beans and chunks of fresh pumpkin into each bite. With a little bit of a spicy kick it makes a perfect easy and hearty dinner.

  • 10m
  • 4h
  • a lot

Ingredients

  • 1 lb sausage
  • 1 lb ground beef
  • 1 large onion
  • 1/4 c roasted garlic cloves
  • 1 can (15 oz) black beans
  • 1 can (15 oz) red kidney beans
  • 1 can (15 oz) pinto beans
  • 1 can (15 oz) great white northern beans
  • 1 c whole kernel corn (fresh, frozen or canned)
  • 1 can (15 oz) roasted tomatoes in juice
  • 1 can (15oz) pumpkin puree
  • 1 tbsp. chili powder
  • 1/2 tbsp. cumin
  • 1/2 tbsp. white pepper
  • 1/2 tbsp. cayenne pepper
  • 1/2 tsp. ginger
  • 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1/2 c chili sauce
  • 1 bottle (12 oz) pumpkin beer or apple cider
  • 4 c cubed fresh pumpkin (or butternut squash)

Instructions

  1. In a large skillet, brown the sausage and ground beef. Drain any excess liquid and place browned meat in bottom of a large 6 quart slow cooker.
  2. In the same skillet, sauté garlic and onions until onions are soft and start to turn slightly transparent. I like to use whole roasted garlic cloves but you can used minced garlic if you prefer a finer size. Add cooked garlic and onions to crockpot on top of meat.
  3. Drain and rinse the beans and add them to the crockpot. Add corn, tomatoes (including juice), and pumpkin pureé. Top with spices and chili sauce.
  4. Pour in the beer. If you want to make this chili gluten free, use apple cider or my favorite, hard apple or pumpkin cider. You can also just use water. Give it all a good stir to mix everything together.
  5. Top with cubed fresh pumpkin or butternut squash. I like to put it on top and let the steam from the crockpot slowly steam it, rather than mix it in. That way it doesn't get too mushy and just disintegrate into the chili.
  6. Slow cook on low for 4-6 hours. Alternately you can simmer in a large stock pot on the stove on medium-low heat for at least 40 mins, stirring occasionally. The longer you can let it simmer the better.
  7. When ready to serve, give it a good stir again to incorporate the squash into the rest of the chili. Serve with a dollop of sour cream, sprinkle with cheese and garnish with pepitas to finish it off.

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