Venison, Sausage, and Black Bean Chili

Ingredients

• 1/4 pound spicy chicken sausage
• Cooking spray
• 2 cups chopped onion (about 2 medium)
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 pound boneless venison loin, trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 2 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 1 cup chopped plum tomato (about 2 medium)
• 1 cup water
• 2 tablespoons ancho chile powder
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 (15-ounce) can no-salt-added black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1/4 cup (1 ounce) crumbled goat cheese
• Jalapeño pepper slices (optional)

Preparation

1. 1. Remove casings from sausage. Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add sausage, onion, and garlic to pan; sauté minutes or until onion is tender, stirring to crumble sausage. Add venison; cook 4 minutes or until venison is browned. Stir in tomato paste; cook 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add chicken broth and next 5 ingredients (through cumin), scraping pan to loosen browned bits; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 1 hour and 15 minutes or until venison is tender. Stir in black beans; cook 10 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Top each serving with crumbled goat cheese. Serve with jalapeño slices, if desired.