Bento Box Bits of everything

Midnight Chili

Saw a post on reddit that inspired me to make my own chili. "Midnight" chili because I had just got back from a late night of bar trivia and threw it all in the slow cooker for 8 hrs.

My first time- didn't follow an exact recipe but just threw it all together and hoped for the best. Tried to keep it low-carb (black soybeans from Whole Foods is key). Here's what I remember tossing together:

Ingredients:
1 pound extra lean ground beef
1/2 pound lean grass fed ground beef (just for kicks)
1 large yellow onion – diced - browned in skillet
5 slices of thick cut bacon, chopped - browned in skillet
2 small cans sliced mushrooms
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 can black soy beans
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can (8 ounce) tomato sauce
1 large can tomatoes with green chilies - 14 1/2 oz can
1 1/2 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon onion powder
1/2 tablespoon paprika
1/2 tablespoon ground cumin
1/2 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1/2 tablespoon oregano
1/2 tablespoon dried basil
1/2 tablespoon dried parsley
1/2 tablespoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 1/2 cups of water

Definite improvements for next time:
With feedback from Peter, I definitely need- lots more chili powder, more cumin, add salt (I thought the other powders would make up for no salt, but apparently not), maybe a tiny bit less cocoa powder.
Instead of throwing the ground beef into the slow cooker for 8 hours - which turned it into mush, brown/cook in pan first, and add a mixture of sausage or stew meat for different meat textures.

Next time also try:
Use fresh garlic cloves in addition to powder
Try beef broth
Add some kind of sweetener (some recipes call for honey)
Add more green veggies and bell peppers (more colors)
Lower carbs by using less tomatoes
Garnish with sour cream and avocado and cheddar cheese