Homemade Chili Recipe

For those of you who have canned, frozen and otherwise preserved summer produce from your garden, now is your chance to shine - and be inspired to gardening even more. There are few dishes that chase away bone-chilling winter than homemade chili.

Over the years, I have tried a range of recipes from vintage to modern. I have also tried a number of combinations but forgotten to write most of them down - well, except for this one. I was making it at one of my brother's homes and my sister-in-law insisted I write it down as I was throwing it together.

One of the nice things about chili is there are a only a few basic ingredients; after the basics, you can customize to your own taste.

I start with fresh tomatoes when I can, or a jar of canned tomatoes. When you start adding other preserved garden produce like green peppers, zucchini, squash, and whatever else you may have handy, this chili recipe becomes a culinary adventure.

Do you also have a secret chili ingredient? Every chili maker has one!

Charlotte’s Homemade Chili Recipe

For this recipe, you will need:

• 16 oz. can pinto beans; 16 oz. can red beans or 32 oz. of one kind of beans

• 1 1/2 lbs ground beef (optional)

• 1 large cut up yellow onion

• 1-3 cut up garlic cloves

• 2 cups water

For seasoning:  

• 2-3 tablespoons chili power

• 1 teaspoon fresh-dried oregano from garden

• 1 teaspoon ground cumin

• 1 teaspoon baking cocoa

• 1-2 teaspoons salt

• Bay leaves

Instructions: 

• Add and brown ground beef.

• In a larger pot, mix tomatoes and beans.

• Add seasonings and 2 cups water. Cook on low.

• Drain browned hamburger and onions; add to simmering pot.

• Taste test.

• Add salt if necessary. Add 2-3 bay leaves. Cook for 15 minutes longer.

• Remove bay leaves.

• Serve, or store in small containers to freeze for later use.

Charlotte

Spicy Spices

My spice drawer mid-year, not bad. So far. (Photo by Charlotte Ekker Wiggins)

Spicy Spices

We all do it, keep spices too long, then wonder why our dishes don't have flavor.

Dried spices, in general, are good for about 6 months stored in small glass jars. Some will last longer if you store them in a dark place until used.

I go through my spice drawer once a year to re-organize the jars. They start out the new year cleaned out, in alphabetical order, with a list of which ones I need to buy fresh.

By the end of the year, the drawer is a mess but I still know which ones to replace, and which herbs I need to grow.

To keep track of jars, I write the date I bought it on the glass jar bottom so I can easily determine which ones are out of date.

Don't throw them away; you can compost dried spices and with some good soaking, reuse the glass jars.

Many of these jars are also now keeping nails, screws and other small items stored in my garage workshop. In my crafts room, more jars hold buttons, needles and pins. And throughout the house, a little spice jar holds favorite cat treats. They are the same treats in all jars but my cat Shirley Honey insists on sampling them in every room. Suppose she’s testing for freshness?

What is your favorite spice?

Charlotte