Home-Made Chili

One day last fall I wasn't feeling well, and so I took the day off work. Maybe it was the time of year or maybe it was because I was looking out the window and seeing all the autumn colors in the leaves, but I wanted some chili. It took less than fifteen minutes to put it together. Then I let it simmer on the stove. The chili smelled so good simmering on the stove that I didn’t wait for lunch. I went ahead and had a bowl of it around ten o’clock that morning. It was absolutely wonderful! The navy beans (instead of kidney beans) make it easy on the digestive system. What a great recipe - even if I do say so myself! So here is how I made it:

Home-made Chili

1 lb. ground beef

2 medium onions, diced

bell peppers (green, red, yellow), diced - about 1 cup altogether

3 stalks celery - including leaves, diced finely

2 tablespoons olive oil (needed only if the ground beef is very lean)

2 cans diced tomatoes

1 can tomato sauce (or 1 small can tomato paste)

2 cans navy beans (or whatever kind of beans you like in chili. I just prefer the mildness of the navy beans)

chili powder (to taste - probably a couple tablespoons)

salt and pepper to taste

Heat the olive oil in a large pot. Add the ground beef, onions, peppers and celery. Saute until the ground beef is browned and the veggies are tender. Add the diced tomatoes (juice and all), tomato sauce/paste, the navy beans, chili powder, salt and pepper. Add enough water to cover everything - make it a good consistency for chili. Stir well and simmer for a couple hours. It’ll be ready after about thirty minutes, but it tastes much better if the flavors simmer together for a long time. And it’ll be even better the second day.

Serve with crackers or corn bread. RT likes to sprinkle diced onions, a dollop of sour cream and some shredded cheese on top before serving.