We celebrated with chili . . .

because it was a chili sort of day. Yesterday, that is. Today it's sunny and warm and tomorrow will be in the upper 80s again. But that's OK. Because we'll celebrate with more chili tonight. And tomorrow at lunch. And probably for dinner tomorrow night as well.

I thought I'd share this made-from-scratch, out-of-nowhere, on-the-fly recipe with you. It's (currently) Chris' favorite rendition of my chili. I must admit . . . I never make it the same way twice.

Alecia's September 2010 Chili
1 Tb butter or olive oil
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp coriander
1 tsp cinnamon (unsweetened)
2 Tb parsley flakes
1 tsp salt
4 small/2 large bay leaves
2 large sweet onions, diced
1 large orange pepper, diced
8 cloves of garlic, minced
1 large can diced tomatoes, drained
2 large cans crushed tomatoes
1 medium can tomato paste
1 7 oz. can chipotles in adobo sauce finely diced/minced
1 large can of light red (or whatever kind you prefer) kidney beans well drained
1 cup frozen corn kernels
1 lb lean ground beef (we prefer ground angus)
1 lb ground turkey
1/2 cup honey (more or less to taste)
1/2 cup milk or heavy cream


1. In a large Dutch oven, heat 1 T butter or olive oil over medium-high heat. Add diced onions, diced orange pepper, and minced garlic. Saute until translucent and heated through. Remove from pan and set aside. Leave some of the butter/oil in pan for step 2.

2. Add butter or oil to pan if not enough remains from step 1. Add the ground beef and ground turkey to the pan and cook until no pink remains. Add salt.

3. Reduce heat to low. Stir in tomato paste and honey until well combined. Add cumin, coriander, cinnamon, parsley and bay leaves. Add the onion, pepper, and garlic back in. Stir until well combined. Pour in crushed tomatoes, diced tomatoes, and the drained kidney beans. Stir in the frozen corn kernels. Stir in milk.

4. Bring almost up to a boil with lid off and then reduce heat to low and simmer for as long as you'd like with the lid slightly cracked. We usually let it sit about an hour while I make some cornbread. Stir occasionally.

Note: If there's too much heat, add a little more milk or just serve with copious amounts of cheese and sour cream. Or, you could reduce the amount of chipotle in adobo used. If there's not enough heat, however, either add chili powder (2 tsp) or use a larger can of chipotles in adobo or add a few crushed red pepper flakes. For my taste, and I like it hot, the 11 oz. can of chipotles is too much heat. The 7 oz. can seems just about right.

Even if it's not too hot, serve with copious amounts of sour cream and a Mexican four cheese blend. Tonight we might try queso fresco instead of the four cheese blend.

Serve with cornbread. The Jiffy kind is fine. Modified with some honey, it's perfect. Last night we tried a gluten free cornbread recipe. I might share a modified version of that with you next time . . . interested?