Kelly JensenThis vegan chili mac recipe is hearty comfort food loaded with plant protein and fresh vegetables! Great as a meal prep or game day dinner.
Serve with a slice of thick crusty no-knead bread or cornbread, and top with your favorite toppings: cilantro, crackers, sour cream or coconut cream, and melty cheese. This is one hearty high fiber dinner the whole family will love.
The fall and winter months always give me an excuse to add pumpkin to any meal! And this pumpkin chili mac recipe is a delicious and hearty bowl that everyone at the table will love. I love eating pumpkin, it really is one of my favorite foods. Canned pumpkin works great in this chili mac (just make sure you get plain pumpkin puree and not pumpkin pie mix!) or you can make your own puree with fresh pumpkins.
This Chili Mac and Cheese Recipe Is:
- Rich
- Hearty
- Cozy
- Loaded with Flavor
- Perfect for Fall or Winter
- Earthy
- High Protein
- Vegan, Gluten Free, Dairy Free
Make Chili Mac Vegan or Vegetarian
This vegan chili mac recipe is a simple way to get extra veggies in your diet. I’m all about making recipes plant-based when I can. Vegan cooking does NOT have to be bland, boring, or flavorless… It’s quite the opposite when done right. By building meals around vegan pantry staples and swapping in a few plant-based ingredients you can make better meals for you and your family.
I made a list of my 125 favorite vegan pantry ingredients that we use on a weekly basis, and check out all my vegan recipes here that are on The Herbeevore. These easy and tasty recipes are fantastic meatless and dairy free meals for your table.
What In This Lentil & Pumpkin Chili Recipe?
I cook with fresh produce from my garden and from Misfits Market– they sell fantastic fruit, vegetables, & pantry staples at a discounted price. We get Misfit boxes every other week and love picking out favorite produce for delivery. Get $10 off your first box here!
- Carrots, Onion, Bell Peppers
- GF Macaroni Noodles: to make this gluten free, these awesome GF macaroni pasta noodles work perfect in this recipe. If you aren’t gluten free, then you can use normal macaroni, whole wheat, or a veggie pasta.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil: I like to use this fruity Zoe olive oil which has a fantastic flavor and deep color- it’s really inexpensive online here, so I keep a few liters stocked up in my pantry. For the quality of oil you get, it’s an excellent value, I would highly recommend!
- Diced Tomatoes: I use a no salt added variety. I like these Colavita boxed tomatoes, which are a great value on Amazon… I just stocked up my pantry with a few packs of these. Plus boxes are more eco friendly than cans, so double win.
- Kidney Beans: again, a low salt variety is preferred if using canned beans, or make them from scratch and not use salt.
- Vegetable Stock or Boullion: I like using Better than Boullion’s low sodium vegetable base, it has a great flavor without the extra salt!
- Spices: chili powder, paprika, oregano, cumin, salt, and crushed red pepper flakes for heat
- Corn
- Toppings: fresh chopped cilantro, red onion, coconut cream, sourdough croutons, or melty cheese
Meal Prep This Pumpkin Chili Mac!
You can easily meal prep this vegan pumpkin chili mac by following the below recipe and dividing it into a few equal portions to enjoy throughout the week. I love having a delicious homemade meal ready in my fridge during the busy weekdays.
By meal prepping this recipe, you can cook once and have perfectly portioned meals ready to go. I rely heavily on meal prepping and created a whole section of the site to recipes you can meal prep, batch cook, or make ahead. Heat + eat, you’re all set!
How Do I Make This Vegan Chili Mac and Cheese Recipe?
- Cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain and set aside.
- In a large pot, heat the olive oil over low heat. Add the onions and sauté on low for 4 to 5 minutes. Add the carrots, bell pepper, chili powder, paprika, oregano, cumin, and salt to the pot. Stir with a wooden spoon for a minute until the spices have coated the vegetables.
- To the pot, add the lentils, vegetable stock, and diced tomatoes with the juice and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook on low heat for 30 minutes or until carrots have cooked through.
- Add the pumpkin puree kidney beans, and corn, and stir well to combine. Add hot sauce if you like a spicier chili. Cook for another 10 minutes on low heat until chili is hot and simmering.
- To serve, add a scoop of the pasta in each bowl, top with a scoop of chili, and add any toppings you like!
One of the BEST Pantry Staple Dinner Recipes
This vegan pumpkin chili mac recipe is a fantastic pantry-staple meal! It uses almost all ingredients you would have in your dry pantry or cupboards. You probably already have a lot of these ingredients on hand! Keeping a well-stocked pantry makes it easy to come up with delicious and yummy meals using a few staples you can rotate.
I made a list of my Top 125 Plant-Based Pantry Staples that always keep on hand. And you can check out all my favorite pantry staple recipes on TheHerbeevore.com here. By stocking up on whole ingredients you can cook delicious recipes without a trip to the store!
More Fall Dinner Recipes You’ll Love
Healthy Mac and Cheese Soup Recipe (High Protein, Vegetarian)
Instant Pot Baked Ziti (Vegetarian, Vegan, Gluten Free)
Sheet Pan Chickpea & Root Vegetable Dinner (Vegan, GF)
Lentil Pasta Fagioli Soup (Vegan, Gluten Free, High Protein)
& read through my Top 125 Vegan Pantry Staple Ingredients & Recipes that I stock my pantry with!
Share This Vegan Chili Mac Recipe!
As always, if you make this vegan chili mac recipe be sure to leave me a comment, rate this recipe, and tag me @theherbeevore on Instagram so I can feature you. I love seeing all your photos of my recipe recreations!
Let’s keep in touch – make sure to sign up for my newsletter to get recipes delivered fresh to your inbox. And don’t forget to follow over on Pinterest, Instagram , & Twitter– I’d love to connect with you there!
Vegan Chili Mac
Ingredients
- 8 ounces macaroni use gluten free if you avoid wheat
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 sweet onion
- 2 carrots diced
- 2 bell pepper
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon Himalayan sea salt
- 2 cups No-Salt-Added Vegetable Stock
- 1 14 ounce No-Salt-Added Diced Tomatoes
- 2 13.5 ounce cans kidney beans drained and rinsed
- 1 cup sweet corn
- 1/4 teaspoon Crushed Red Pepper Flakes skip if you like less spicy chili
- Toppings: fresh chopped cilantro red onion coconut cream, sourdough croutons, or melty cheese.
Instructions
- Cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain and set aside.
- In a large pot, heat the olive oil over low heat. Add the onions and saute on low for 4 to 5 minutes. Add the carrots, bell pepper, chili powder, paprika, oregano, cumin, and salt to the pot. Stir with a wooden spoon for a minute until the spices have coated the vegetables.
- To the pot, add the vegetable stock, and diced tomatoes with the juice and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook on low heat for 30 minutes or until carrots have cooked through.
- Add the kidney beans, and corn, and stir well to combine. Add hot sauce if you like a spicier chili. Cook for another 10 minutes on low heat until chili is hot and simmering.
- To serve, add a scoop of the pasta in each bowl, top with a scoop of chili, and add any toppings you like!
Notes
Save Money on Organic Groceries!
I get all the fresh produce for my recipes from my garden and from Misfits Market – they sell all organic produce at a super discounted price, and it’s purchased direct from the farmers. We get Misfit Market boxes every month and love picking out our favorite seasonal produce for delivery. You can get $10 off your first $30 box by clicking here! If you think organic produce is too expensive… think again, and give Misfits Market a look!Nutrition
Or tag me @theherbeevore in your photo on Instagram!
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A great use for pumpkin