Super Bowl Food

Super Bowl Sunday is coming up this weekend and we're having a small gathering over.  Along with the pizza that we'll have, I'm going have a chili bar going as well.  We have quite a bit of stew meat in our freezer from one of our natural beef animals we've recently harvested, so Chili Con Carne is on the menu.

photo by Bon Appetit

I found a recipe that I thought looked really good in Bon Appetit's magazine this month and I've adapted the recipe below from their recipe.  I like beans in my chili so one of the changes I made was to add pinto beans to the recipe. 

I'm also going to take the recipe and add it all to a slow cooker the day of the party, that way there's very little prep time and more time to enjoy guests. 

Chili Con Carne & Beans

Ingredients

•4 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided

•4 pounds well-trimmed boneless beef chuck (from about 5 pounds), cut into 1/2-inch cubes and 4 cans of pinto beans 

•2 medium onions, chopped
•1 head of garlic (about 15 cloves), peeled, chopped
•1/2 cup ground ancho chiles
•2 tablespoons ground cumin
•1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
•1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
•1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
•1 12-ounce bottle dark beer
•1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes in juice
•2 teaspoons dried oregano
•2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt
•2 tablespoons tomato paste
•3 tablespoons masa (corn tortilla mix)

Garnishes
•Coarsely grated sharp cheddar cheese
•Chopped green and/or red onion
•Chopped fresh cilantro
•Diced fresh tomatoes (optional)
•Sour cream (optional)

•ingredient info

Ground ancho chiles are available in the spice section of supermarkets and at Latin markets. Masa (or masa harina) is sold at supermarkets and Latin markets.

•Test-Kitchen Tip

Stirring in a few tablespoons of masa (corn tortilla mix) at the end helps thicken the chili.

Preparation

•Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large pot over medium-high heat. Add 1/3 of beef; sprinkle with salt. Cook until browned, stirring occasionally, about 3 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer beef to large bowl. Repeat 2 more times with 2 tablespoons oil and beef.

•Reduce heat to medium. Add 1 tablespoon oil and onions. Sauté until soft, 8 to 10 minutes. Add garlic; stir 2 minutes. Add ground anchos, cumin, allspice, cinnamon, and cloves; stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add beer; stir 1 minute, scraping up browned bits. Return beef and juices to pot. Add tomatoes with juice, 2 cups water, oregano, and 2 teaspoons coarse salt. Bring chili to boil. Reduce heat to low, cover with lid slightly ajar, and simmer gently until beef is just tender, 13/4 to 2 hours. Cool 1 hour, then chill uncovered until cold. Cover; chill overnight.

•Spoon fat from chili. Bring chili to simmer over medium heat. Stir in tomato paste. Sprinkle masa over; stir to blend. Simmer uncovered until thickened and beef is very tender, stirring often, and adding more water by 1/4 cupfuls if too thick, about 30 minutes.

•Divide chili among bowls. Top with garnishes and serve.


I can already taste this, it looks so good.  Can't wait to spoon up a bowl of it and have some warm cornbread to go along with it.

What are your plans for Super Bowl??

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Pumpkin Beer Chili & Raspberry Honey Drizzled Cornbread

With all this talk and the feel of fall, I wanted to make a comfort food type of dinner.  The other night at my Healthy Cooking Meeting, a couple of the ladies brought over some crock pot chili, which inspired me to try it at home.  With the recent winter like rain storms we've been experiencing here in northern California, I thought it would be a perfect night to try a slow cooker chili.

Here's what you need, plus an onion and a pound of ground beef or turkey.  I used ground turkey this time.  We normally have a freezer full of our natural beef, but we happen to be out right now so I bought some ground turkey at Trader Joe's to substitute.

After snapping the photo and opening a few cans of beans, I decided not to include the baked beans in the photo for my recipe.  The great thing about chili is that you can fish through your pantry and grab any type of canned beans {brain food} you have on hand.  I even threw in some garbanzo beans this time.  Nothing could be simpler.

After chopping up an onion, throw it into the skillet with the ground turkey and brown.  Of course this could easily be made into a vegetarian dish by omitting the ground turkey. 

Bryce loves to eat raw onion and is always sneaking some whenever he notices me chopping one.

After you you pour all the beans, stewed tomatoes and salsa into a slow cooker, mix in the ground turkey and onion.

Mix it well so it looks like this

Sticking to the fall theme, I poured in an entire bottle of Pumpkin Ale {but any ale will do}.

Simmer for a good 4-5 hours or longer if you want.  Top with your favorite shredded cheese and or sour cream.  This was SO good!  And even better the following day for leftovers.

To go along with my chili, I was craving some sweet tasting corn bread.  I would have made it from scratch, but why do that when I had a bag of this Marie Callender's on hand?  Instead of mixing it with water, I used whole milk {more brain food} and also added a cup of Mexican shredded cheese to the batch.  The milk and cheese really give the corn bread a moist texture, so much better than just water.

Pour the batter into an 8 x 8 baking dish and bake according to directions on the bag...about 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, this comes out.

I couldn't wait to dig into this warm, sweet cornbread topped with butter and drizzled with some raspberry honey!  Oh so good!  It was almost like dessert!

I highly recommend this raw raspberry honey....delicious!  I think I found this tiny 3oz. jar at Trader Joe's, but not 100 % sure of this.  This would be great in some hot tea as well.

Chili Recipe:

1 can black beans, rinsed
1 can kidney beans, rinsed
1 can white kidney beans, rinsed
1 large can ranch style beans or pinto beans
1 can stewed tomatoes, any flavor
1 jar Trader Joe's garlic salsa
1 can garbanzo beans, rinsed
1 pound ground beef or turkey
1 medium onion
1 bottle of pumpkin ale or your favorite beer

Combine all beans, salsa and stewed tomatoes.
Brown ground turkey with the chopped onion.  Add to the bean mixture.  Add the pumpkin ale.  Mix well.  Cook in slow cooker for 4-5 hours.  Top with your favorite topping.


If you're a chili lover, you may also enjoy these chili recipes:
Vegetarian Zesty Wheat Berry Black Bean Chili
and
Beef and Bean Chili Verde

Happy Tuesday!
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Playoff Pleasers ~ Food To Feed A Crowd

With the playoffs coming up again this weekend, I wanted to share some party food, great for serving to a crowd and easy too. Beef and Bean Chili Verde and a vegetarian chile~ Zesty Wheat Berry - Black Bean Chili.

Make up a Chili Bar for your guests. Set out bowls of grated cheese, chopped onion, avocado & sour cream as toppings & serve with some warm corn bread and you will have a delicious meal that goes great with football and beer.

Tip: keep warm all day in a slow cooker/crock pot

Zesty Wheat Berry-Black Bean Chili

6 servings, about 1 1/2 cups each (Double the ingredients for a party)

Ingredients• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion, chopped
• 1 large yellow bell pepper,chopped
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 2 15-ounce cans black beans, rinsed
• 2 14-ounce cans no-salt-added diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1-2 canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, minced (see Tip)
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 2 teaspoons light brown sugar
• 2 cups Cooked Wheat Berries
• Juice of 1 lime
• 1 avocado, diced
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
•
Preparation
1. Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion, bell pepper, garlic, chili powder, cumin, oregano, salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 5 minutes. Add beans, tomatoes, chipotle to taste, broth and brown sugar. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 25 minutes.

2. Stir in cooked wheat berries and heat through, about 5 minutes more. (If using frozen wheat berries, cook until thoroughly heated.) Remove from the heat. Stir in lime juice. Garnish each bowl with avocado and cilantro.

Tips & Notes
Tip: Canned chipotle peppers (smoked jalapeños) in adobo sauce add heat and a smoky flavor. Look for the small cans with other Mexican foods in large supermarkets. Once opened, store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator or 6 months in the freezer. Cooked wheat berries will keep for up to 1 month in your freezer and there's no need to thaw them; just stir them directly into the chili.

Nutrition
Per serving: 386 calories; 11 g fat (1 g sat, 7 g mono); 61 g carbohydrates; 14 g protein; 15 g fiber; 703 mg sodium; 311 mg potassium.

Nutrition Bonus: Vitamin C (130% daily value), Fiber (72% dv), Folate (48% dv), Iron & Vitamin A (25% dv).
3 Carbohydrate Serving

Exchanges: 3 starch, 1 vegetable, 1 very-lean meat, 2 fat






















Beef & Bean Chili Verde

6 servings, about 1 1/2 cups each (double the ingredients for a party)

Ingredients• 1 pound 93%-lean ground beef
• 1 large red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 6 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
• 1 16-ounce jar green salsa, green enchilada sauce or taco sauce
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 15-ounce can pinto or kidney beans, rinsed
• 1 15 oz can of corn
• 1 15 oz can of black beans
• 1 15 oz can of diced tomatoes

Preparation
1. Cook beef, bell pepper and onion in a large saucepan over medium heat, crumbling the meat with a wooden spoon, until the meat is browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Add garlic, chili powder, cumin and cayenne; cook until fragrant, about 15 seconds. Stir in salsa (or sauce) and water; bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender, 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in beans and cook until heated through, about 1 minute.

Tips & Notes
• Make Ahead Tip: Cover and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Reheat just before serving.

Nutrition
Per serving: 307 calories; 8 g fat (3 g sat, 3 g mono); 64 mg cholesterol; 29 g carbohydrates; 27 g protein; 6 g fiber; 516 mg sodium; 641 mg potassium.

Nutrition Bonus: Vitamin C (100% daily value), Vitamin A & Zinc (40% dv), Folate (20% dv), Potassium (18% dv).
1 1/2 Carbohydrate Serving

Exchanges: 1 starch, 2 vegetable, 3 lean meat Pin It