We Do This a Lot

  

What would a fall/winter Sunday evening be like without a chili night? We have to have at least one every season...sometimes up to three or four! Oh, and always new chili recipes. Very few repeats in our family! Here are our most recent chili findings.

Killer Chili

Ingredients:

1 (1 pound) package bacon

3 pounds ground beef

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 cups red wine (or beef broth, which is what we used)

3 (28 ounce) cans diced tomatoes

2 (14 ounce) cans tomato sauce

2 teaspoons vegetable oil

3 green bell peppers, chopped

4 stalks celery, chopped

2 onions, chopped

2 (19 ounce) cans kidney beans, rinsed and drained

2 (19 ounce) cans white beans, rinsed and drained

1 (19 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained

6 tablespoons chili powder

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup ground cumin

3 tablespoons paprika

2 tablespoons Italian seasoning

2 tablespoons distilled white vinegar

2 tablespoons dried basil

2 tablespoons dried minced onion

3 tablespoons dried parsley

2 tablespoons crushed red pepper flakes

4 teaspoons dried oregano

12 dashed hot pepper sauce (such as Tabasco)

Salt and ground black pepper, to taste 

Favorite chili toppings, such as cilantro, shredded cheese, diced avocado etc.

Directions:

Place the bacon in a large, deep skillet, and cook over medium-high heat, turning occasionally, until evenly browned, about 10 minutes. Drain the bacon slices on a paper towel-lined plate. Crumble and set aside.

Heat a large stock popt over medium-high heat and cook and stir the ground beef until the beef is crumbly, evenly browned, and no longer pink. Drain and discard any excess grease. Stir in the bacon and minced garlic. Reduce heat to medium-low and stir in the red wine (or beef broth), diced tomatoes, and tomato sauce.

Heat the vegetable oil in a skillet over medium heat. Stir in the green bell peppers, celery, and chopped onion; cook and stir until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir onion mixture into the stock pot. Increase the heat to medium-high and bring to a near bowl. Mix in the kidney beans, white beans, and black beans. Season with chili powder, brown sugar, cumin, paprika, Italian seasoning, vinegar, basil, dried minced onion, parsley, red pepper flakes, oregano, hot pepper sauce, salt, and pepper. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 1 hour 30 minutes, stirring often.

Serves 25.

Source: Allrecipes.com, submitted by hoeguy. You can find it here.

Chiliville Chili

Ingredients:

1 pound Johnsonville Italian ground mild, sweet, or hot Italian sausage

1 pound ground beef

1 medium onion, chopped

3 celery ribs, chopped

3 garlic cloves, minced

3 (14.5 ounce) cans diced tomatoes with green peppers and onions

2 (16 ounce) cans kidney beans, rinsed and drained

1 (14.5 ounce) can beef broth

1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste

2 tablespoons brown sugar

2 tablespoons chili powder

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Shredded Cheddar cheese, optional

Directions:

In a large saucepan, cook sausage and ground beef over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Add the onion, celery, and garlic. Cook and stir for 5 minutes or until tender. Stir in the tomatoes, beans, broth, tomato paste, brown sugar, chili powder, Worcestershire sauce, cumin, and red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 20 minutes.

Sprinkle with cheese, if you like, and serve immediately.

Serves 10.

Source: Allrecipes.com, submitted by The Kitchen at Johnsonville Sausage. You can find it here.

Notes: This was great. Spicier than the other chili, in my opinion. Feel free to top it with and of your favorite chili toppings.

Oh, and don't forget to serve your favorite chili with some cornbread muffins (mini ones for the kiddies too!).