Forecast: Chili Today!

I spent this morning in my kitchen. This is not a death sentence, it was a slice of paradise. I don't often get a few hours at a time to play in there, so it was wonderful! Saturdays have become the only day of the week when I have the time to cook a hot breakfast for the family anymore. So today it was bacon and eggs and our Orange Julius. And I also had signed up to bring dinner rolls to a lunch meeting at church today, so I popped all the ingredients in the breadmaker and let it do its thing, then shaped & baked them just before walking out the door with them. Mmmm, hot rolls are YUM. I am such a sucker for carbs.

And, I made dinner in the crockpot. The best thing about cooking in the crock is that I know that dinner is not only taken care of, but it's ready at the drop of a hat, or even at different times for different people. It makes me feel so much more organized than I really am.

This is not a gourmet recipe, but it is easy, and it is good. In fact, the only person around here that doesn't like it, is Emma. And that's just because she's the world's pickiest eater. But once again, for my other kids who someday might want their old mom's recipe -- here you go ...

 

Chili

 

1 1/2-2 pounds ground beef

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

3 cans kidney beans

3 cans tomato sauce

1 can diced tomatoes

2-3 tablespoons chili powder

2 tablespoons minced garlic

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon sugar

Salt & Pepper

 

 

I know -- it's a lot of cans, right? Hence, the "easy" descriptor!

 

Cooking the onion first is kind of optional, but I like the flavor. So cook the onion in a little butter or olive oil. Today, since I happened to have made bacon for breakfast, I cooked the onion in some of the bacon grease. Brown the hamburger in the same skillet, until it's cooked through, and season with salt and pepper. (I push the onions to the edges, and just keep them in the same pan while the hamburger cooks.)

 

Rinse and drain the kidney beans. You could definitely use pinto beans, if you want. And then put everything into a crock pot.

 

 

Use the liquid that's in the tomatoes, too. Stir it all up and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or on high for 4 hours.

 

 

I've also made this in a big pot on the stovetop. Because it's all cooked before you start, it really just needs to be heated through. But the longer it simmers, the more the flavors meld together, and the better the chili. (Also, if you cook it on the stovetop, then cooking the onion is not optional anymore. Cook it for sure.)

 

We always serve it with shredded cheese on top. The hot chili melts the cheese and it is so yummy!

 

 

Also when we serve chili, I love having it with warm cornbread and honey. So, here's the two-for-one bonus recipe ...

 

Cornbread

 

My favorite way to make cornbread is a method I learned from a friend several years ago, and it's pretty darn simple. I didn't photograph it with this chili, because I ended up doing something different today. (And -- it was a colossal disappointment, and I'm resolved to go back to this, my tried-and-true recipe friend.)

 

So, all you do is combine a basic cornbread mix (I use the little boxes of Jiffy mix), and a box of yellow cake mix. Then, you add all the ingredients that each box of mix calls for. So, for example, your ingredients would look something like this:

 

1 box Jiffy Cornbread Mix

1 box yellow cake mix

4 eggs (3 from the cake mix box, and 1 from the cornbread box)

1/3 cup milk

1 cup water

1/3 cup oil.

 

Stir it all together and pour it immediately into a greased pan. If you wait to pour it, it will start rising in the bowl, and then will lose some of that as you transfer it to the pan. So don't wait! I prefer to make cornbread in a cast iron pan, and I either use a 12" Dutch oven, or my big cast iron skillet. I spray it well with non-stick cooking spray. Bake at 350 degrees for about 35 minutes or so, -- test for doneness with a toothpick.

 

I also use a plastic knife to cut the cornbread in the pan, and a rubber spatula to serve, because they  don't scratch through the "seasoning" layer of the cast iron. This is a sweeter, moister cornbread, as well as taller -- it rises more than average cornbread. Sometimes, I've combined the dry mixes, then divided them in half, and only made half a recipe at a time.

 

Despite being the beginning of March, it snowed a bit last night and today. The chili was the perfect dinner to go along with that. And as much as I like winter, I'm ready for Spring by the time March hits. I hope Mother Nature cooperates.