Warm Chili

I love chili, in fact it's in my top ten favorite foods. It always makes me happy, I never think "oh no, not chili again...."! I've been to a couple chili cook-offs and I LOVE tasting all the chili's. It gives me so many ideas, of course I never follow through with them... but I do love them! I wish my husband shared my love of chili so we could go to more cook-offs and eat more chili!

Which brings us to this recipe. My husband. He just doesn't love my chili. I've been making my chili for YEARS! I first shared it on the blog 6 years ago! Check it out here. Well, husband has become less of a fan of spicy than he ever was, and honestly I think some of the foods have become a little spicier? Like the chipotles in adobo, anyone else think they have gotten hotter over the years? Or maybe it's just my husband rubbing off on my tastebuds and I am not as tough as I used to be. 

I needed to find a chili we could agree on. I found it! Just walking through the grocery store yesterday, I saw a can of enchilada sauce and was inspired. A couple tweaks to my old recipe, and this recipe was born. And approved.

Enough spices to warm and give amazing flavor, but nothing to set you on fire. We have finally found the compromise with this "Warm Chili". Not bland, not hot, but warm!

As a side note, I am proud to say the canned tomatoes and tomato paste used in this recipe were canned by me, from my garden! So proud!

Warm Chili

1 lb. lean ground meat (turkey, venison, or beef would all work well)

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 green bell pepper, diced

1 onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

3 Tablespoons chili powder

2 Tablespoons cumin

1 t. salt

1 t. black pepper

3 Tablespoons tomato paste

1 can medium red enchilada sauce
2 (15 oz) cans chili beans ( I used 1 can mild, and 1 can medium)

1 (14.5 oz) can tomatoes

1 - 2 cups water

Optional

Crushed tortilla chips
Shredded cheese

Sour Cream

Green onion

In large pot over medium-high heat, cook ground meat until brown.  Drain.  Stir in onion and peppers; cook until vegetables are tender.  Stir in garlic and cook 1 minute.  Add chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper.  Stir in tomato paste, beans, and enchilada sauce. 

In blender, puree tomatoes with one cup water. 

Simmer about 1 hour before serving. Add additional water if needed.

Garnish as desired!

Sharing this at:
Weekend Potluck
Meal Plan Monday

Hello 2018!

First of all, let me say Happy Thanksgiving, Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and Happy any other holiday you may celebrate!  It's been a while since I've been here and I am not happy about that.

My new job is keeping me busier than I expected, but it's a good thing as I am enjoying the new job quite a bit. Husband has been in his off season at work, so he has been around home more often, and of course leaving me with less time to be on the computer.

We are in the middle of quite a cold snap, but most of the country is. The chickens are getting along fine, although not laying many eggs for us. We have been buying eggs for a couple weeks now. I typically pick up eggs at the country store up the road, which are from a local farmer. But, there have been a couple times when I have had to pick them up in town. Wow... I didn't realize how used I have become to farm fresh eggs! I value my chickens a whole lot more right now!

Rest of the critters are all good. Dogs are the adorable cuteness they always are. Cat's are enjoying their cozy life. With this bitter cold, we have let the barn cats into the basement, so they are content and purring up a storm.

Food. I'm cutting back and cleaning up the diet. Things got a little out of control in 2017, so it's time to re-evaluate habits. I've been cutting back on the carbs, without cutting them out entirely. Cookies, oh my... there was so many cookies last month... So, husband is on rations and enjoying the cookies I put in the freezer to keep them out of my reach.

My blog goal for this year is two recipes a month. One cookie recipe, that will help keep me baking which keeps husband happy, and readers happy also! And, a special young man named Atticus who looks forward to my cookies. With the closing of the Fill the Cookie Jar group, I need to get on my own schedule. And then for the second recipe, I want to share a recipe with a healthy twist.

And pictures! I seriously need to get outside and take more photo's! When's the last time I shared an update from the farm. Better time management folks, better time management is needed in my life!

Be warm!!