Brendan asked about TVP. I think I was the one who said it was used in chili.
I don't remember the brand of chili mix I used, but it came in a little brown
bag with a couple of spice packets and a packet of corn flour thickener. You
can use any brand you like. Follow the directions to reconstitute the TVP (I
think mine calls for 1 cup of TVP to 7/8 cup water), and then just add it to
the recipe as you would have with the ground meat. You do not need to add any
kind of fat at any point. I always add beans, usually canned unless I've
planned far enough in advance to cook dried beans.
I know I've mentioned this before, but you can also buy a can of manwich and
add the tvp to that for sloppy joes. They are great, and again, people just
don't know the difference.
Congratulations on wanting to become more healthy. It's good to be good to
yourself. Smoking cessation is the hardest, I celebrated my 10th year
cigarette-free on August 9.