Recipe: Warm up Chili!

Cold has set in and now begins the arduous process of trying to keep warm! Some try to wear layers, others it's a nice fall jacket but I know the best way to keep warm is a pipping hot bowl of goodness. Whether it's a stew, a soup, gumbo or chili if it's in a bowl and it's warm it's prefect for fall! For my first official warm up I went with chili. I know later on into winter I will be taking requests from friends and family for their favorites so I wanted to get my favorite in right away.

This is a pretty standard chili recipe feel free to play with the heat to get it to a level you like. Usually I like my chili pretty spicy so I'll throw in a few fresh jalapenos or a habanero. I like to add those not just for the spice but for the clean taste that fresh peppers add.

I also like to use a combination of half organic grass fed beef and half bison to keep it on the healthier side. I know that organic beef is still pretty expensive but I found that Costco carries an organic beef that is significantly cheaper than your usual mega mart.

Finally mix up the ratio of beans I'm not a huge fan of pinto beans so I add some black beans to the mix too.


Warm up Chili! (Adapted from Thick and Hearty Chili by Brown Eyed Baker)

Software:
          3 lbs. ground beef (or 1.5lb beef and 1.5lb bison)
          1 large yellow onion, chopped
          5 cloves minced garlic
          1 15-ounce can stewed tomatoes
          2 cups beef stock
          1 15-ounce can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
          1 15-ounce cans pinto beans, drained and rinsed
          1 15-ounce cans black beans, drained and rinsed
          3 Tablespoons chili powder
          1 teaspoon dried oregano
          ½ teaspoon cumin
          2 teaspoons salt
          1 teaspoon ground black pepper
          ¼ cup cornmeal
          

          More Onion, Cheddar Cheese, and Sour Cream for fixings!

Hardware:
          Your favorite soup pot (mine is a 12 quart)

First brown the ground beef/bison with the onion and garlic over a medium heat. Drain the excess liquid and return to the heat.

Next add the beef broth, beans, stewed tomato, seasoning and cornmeal. Stir everything together well and cover. Keep it over low heat for about two hours and give it a stir occasionally.

After those two hours it's ready to eat, however, I know that chili is always better when left overnight so if you can let it rest overnight in the fridge do it!