Monday, February 23, 2015

Still Cold Enough for Comfort Food

It is still COLD!! Well - of course it's going to stay cold for a while, but I am just not feeling this winter weather; enough already!! When the temps keep dropping, and it's cloudy & gloomy most of the time, I know it's time to make some more "comfort food."  I found this definition of comfort food:
             
               "Comfort food is food that provides consolation or a feeling of well-being,              
                 typically any with a high sugar or other carbohydrate content and associated   
                 with childhood or home cooking."

OK- I can go with that, and here's one of my all time
favorites.........CHILI!!

My father was the BEST chili maker in the world, and my recipe is a slightly altered version of his (as I got older, my taste buds evolved). But my version is just as good. Just ask my hubby & son!

Here's how I make mine......
Start by chopping up onion & green peppers, then sauté them in a large skillet until translucent. I usually use one green pepper & one medium onion.
Add a pound of ground beef or turkey; break it up as it cooks, and add some spices.
While the meat & veggies are cooking, add to a large slow-cooker, 2-cans of diced tomatoes, 4-cans of beans (I use a mixture of kidney, red & black), and some spices. The spices I add are all to taste and include salt, pepper, cumin and chili powder.

When the meat & veggies are cooked, I add them to the crock pot.  At this time, I also add my "secret" ingredient........
......chocolate! Yep, chocolate.  It doesn't have to be Hershey's Kisses (that's what I happened to have on hand this time, but it does need to be sweetened - I think it helps cut some of the bitterness of the spices).  I have done this for years, and honestly - it makes a difference!!
These will melt, and all the other flavors will meld as it cooks for several hours on low.  Then - it goes down!!
Our family always puts chili over rice, sprinkles smothers it with cheese, and eats Ritz crackers with it.  Oh boy, my mouth is watering!!

This chili is so good, it NEVER goes to waste.  When we get toward the end, this is what we do with the last bit of it.........
 .....sloppy chili dogs!!.....with Tater Tots of course.

Let me know if you try out my version.

1 comment:

  1. You are the very first person I know that serves their chili over rice....just like my Mom taught me to do Ü My Husband thought I'd lost my mind when I made it the very first time. Now, he loves it, too. I've never heard of putting chocolate in chili so I'm super anxious to try that lil' trick out! Fritos is another good "condiment". Thanks for sharing Ü

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