Snow in Mississippi = Chili in our house!

When I went to sleep last night, there was a light dusting of snow starting to fall and the temperature was hovering around 39 degrees. There was plenty of talk about heavy snow and school closings, but the weather didn't quite look like it was going to do much. The Jackson Public School System said yesterday that they would announce school closings at 5:00AM so naturally, the kids were bounding out of bed at 4:50 to check the news. What they awoke to was this. Indeed, school was closed.

Everyone scurried about, putting on layers of clothes, rubber boots, hats and gloves. Kitty and I rolled over, turned off the alarm and hoped that no one died of frostbite or exposure while we went back to sleep until some less rude hour.

By the time we dragged ourselves out of the warmth of the electric blanket, the whole of Belhaven was blanketed in a thick layer of heavy, wet snow. Every kids in the neighborhood was in the streets and the muffled silence was only broken by the sounds of laughter and the occasional thud of a massive snowball finding its target.

Stuart  managed to make his way to Broad Street Baking company to (what else) meet with some girls to drink hot chocolate. Whit wandered over to his friend Jay's house to congregate with other young teens for sledding and Kitty taught Zak and Charlie how to make their first snowman (and snowdog) ever. We named the snowman Bubba Wayne and I started thinking about Chili!

Since the chili was going to be for kids and adults alike, I decided to make two batches. I called them Chili de los Angeles and Chili de los Diablos. The recipes were identical except for whole jalepeno and the amounts of dried ancho chilis and Indian chili powder. One warms you up like a nice hug from your mom while the other kicks you in the gut, sets your hair on fire and tries to put you out with a bucket of jet fuel.
Bon Appetit!
~Tom

Chili de los Angeles y Chili de los Diablos

Serves 10

3 lbs. chuck (cubed)

4 lbs. ground beef (round, sirloin or chuck)

8 cloves garlic

2 large yellow onions

1 large red onion

1 bunch green onions

1 jalapeño pepper

3 Tbsp. oregano

2 Tbsp. Mexican chili powder

1 Tbsp. or more Indian chili powder (Diablo only)

3 Tbsp. ground cumin

3 Tbsp. paprika

3 or more dried ancho chili peppers with stems and seeds removed (Diablo only)

2 Tbsp. whole coriander

1 tsp. cinnamon powder

4 oz. semi-sweet chocolate

4 Tbsp. olive oil

1 bottle dark beer

1 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes

Cilantro for garnish

Limes for garnish

1 cup sour cream

2 cups queso fresco (or shredded jack cheese)

Prep

Coarsely chop the red onions, yellow onions and garlic. Cut the chuck into ½ inch cubes. Remove the seeds and white membrane from jalapeño pepper and finely chop the remaining flesh. Finely chop the green onions and the ancho chili peppers. Slice the limes into wedges.

Cook

Place a stock pot over medium heat until it is very hot (3 minutes will do the trick) add the cubed beef and quickly brown on all sides. Add olive oil, garlic, red onions, yellow onions and jalapeño pepper and cook until onions are translucent. Add ground beef and brown completely. Add all herbs and dry ingredients, including ancho chilis. Add chocolate and stir until it is well mixed with the beef. Add ½ bottle of beer and tomatoes. Bring all to a simmer and cook until the liquid is reduced by half.

Plate

Ladle chili into a large bowl and top with a dollop of sour cream. Sprinkle with cheese and green onions and garnish with cilantro and lime wedges.

Variations

To morph this bowl of goodness into Frito Pie, cover the bottom of a bowl with corn chips, spoon on a heavy layer of chili, top with melted cheese and microwave for about 30 seconds or until the cheese melts.