It only took... 15 years?

I made chili for the first time 15 years ago.  It tasted good, but it wasn't thick.  And since then I've tried a couple of times a year to make really good chili.  My secret ingredient is cocoa.  Apparently chocolate and chilis are awesome together, and I think it really adds something.  Not enough to taste chocolatey, but a little richness.  So taste - good, texture - eh.  Well, somewhere in the ballpark of 50 chilis later, I think I got it.  I substitued a can of tomato paste for one of my cans of tomatoes.  I know, right?  Less liquid?  Makes sense?  Maybe I'm slow on the uptake...

Maybe everyone else under the sun knew this, but I didn't, so here's what I did.  In case it's like they said in school and if I have a question someone else probably does too..

Thick Chocolate Chili

1 1/2 lbs lean ground beef
2 bell peppers, diced
1 onion, diced
1 T minced garlic
1 T chili powder
1 T unsweeted cocoa
2 t oregano
1 t cumin
1/2 t black pepper
1/2 cayenne (or to taste)
1 6 oz can tomato paste
1 28 oz can diced tomatoes
2 14 oz cans kidney beans

In a large pot, brown the meat and break it up.  Drain the fat from the meat.  Add the peppers, onions and garlic and cook until softened or 5 minutes.  Add the spices and stir, cooking for about 1 minute.  Add the tomato paste and stir to combine.  Allow to cook for about 2 minutes.  Add the diced tomatoes and the beans with the liquid in the cans.  Simmer for at least 2 hours before serving.

I haven't tried this in the crockpot yet.  Bob (husband) thinks that nothing thickens properly in the crockpot, but I'm trying it anyway ;)

It's hard to see, but it's kind of heaped instead of soupy.  That's what I've been trying for!  (I used 1 can kidney beans and 1 can pinto beans, that's why there are light colors in there)

Let me know if you try it and what you think!

Briefly, on entertaining quickly

We have a standing Tuesday night dinner with neighbors from our old neighborhood.  We alternate houses each week and the visitors bring dessert.

This tradition started when I was home full time, and I cooked elaborate dinners and decadent desserts.  Good times.  Now, with 4 full time jobs between the two families, we need to be more realistic.  Some weeks, like last week, we pull it together. 

This week, we ordered pizza.

And on top of the pizza?  That's a peanut butter pie.

With all the time I didn't spend planning a meal, shopping and cooking I made this peanut butter pie.  (oddly enough, posted originally by another Megan).  Minor tweaks - piled the whole batch of filling into one crust instead of two, and chopped a couple of peanut butter cups for the top.

We had just as good of a time, and there were a lot less dishes than last week!

Holy Weekend!

Well, that went fast!

For a quick recap, the red velvet cake was a flop.  The cake was too crumbly and not really chocolatey and the frosting was gluey.  Not even writing a post about it.  (is there an "attitude" font?)

Friday night was Meg time - the dudes went to an outdoor show and I ate pizza and wings with some people from work, and even played a hand of dominos!

Saturday was some much needed Deuce & Mommy time.  I've been so busy I started to miss him!

He and I cooked together.  We made a variation of Creamy Farfalle with Cremini, Asparagus, and Walnuts
We didn't use mushrooms, and roasted the asparagus and pine nuts (instead of walnuts) in the oven tossed in garlic, herbs and olive oil.  It was sinful, and not healthy by a long shot, but totally delicious.


Then to top off the carbs tossed in cheese, we also made a Clementine Cake.  I didn't know that by "ground almonds" she meant almond meal (or flour), so the texture wasn't there for me.  I made ganache for the top b/c I was pissed about how the cake came out and thought some melted chocolate would cheer me up.  Didn't work.  That's actually two duds from Smitten Kitchen a row, and all the sudden I'm off the bandwagon.  Not that I wouldn't cook anything she recommends, but I'm done taking her recipes at face value.


Then Sunday I worked, which sucked, and I was across the street from the only Hobby Lobby within 100 miles (maybe more!) and it was closed.  Which sucked.


But then I took a nap with Deuce which was awesome!  


We had dinner with my parents (brought the clementine cake and left them the last 2 pieces, so I won't feel like I need to eat the rest of it before I bake something else haha!).  Did watch the Criminal Minds from last week, which was a total cliffhanger and had my rapt attention so I didn't knit a stitch.  I know, I know, TV, not accomplishy, but it was worth it!

Oh, and I almost forgot - I exercised!  I know!  Who replaced the real Meg with this "doing healthy thing for self" Meg??? I did a video Saturday and shoveled the driveway (an hour of misery) Sunday...  am I on a roll? Two days is not exactly the long road to fitness, but it's a start!

Despite all the action, I've had a lot of energy today - a fun week and weekend coming up!

If you bake it, they will... expect more

My girlfriend at work, Lauren, baked me a birthday cake from scratch this year.  It was awesome.  So I baked her a cake for her birthday.  Also, awesome.

In the spirit of sharing, we invited the rest of our work team (7 people total).  This was generous, and kept us from digging in to a whole cake between the two of us, but we set the bar awfully high.

Now we're wondering who gets homemade, from scratch, delicious birthday cakes.  Because I am rotten through and through, and dread the thought baking all these cakes for people I'm not close with (for the most part), some people cakes had to be stricken from the list, by objective decisions, not by how much I like them, to avoid hurt feelings.

The rules for cake disqualification are set as follows:

• People who don't tell anybody that their birthdays are coming up do not get a cake, because I'm not a damn mindreader
• People who "don't eat cake" or are "on a diet" do not get cakes because it would not be a good gift for them.  Also because I don't understand these phrases and must conclude they are from another culture that doesn't celebrate things by eating delicious things.  To each their own.

This effectively removed 3 cakes from the to-do list.  Two of us already had our birthdays (mine in December and Lauren's in February), so that is only 2 cakes for the whole year, which will be baked together with Lauren and that will be fun in itself.  No need to panic.

I guess the X factor is that the "I don't mention my birthday" and "I don't eat cake" crowd could change their tune in the name of having cakes baked especially for them.  Cross that bridge when we come to it.

What are these cakes we're baking?

Lauren made me a Hershey's Perfectly Chocolate Chocolate cake with Perfectly Chocolate Chocolate frosting.  This recipe is tried and true and I highly recommend it.

I made Lauren the Chocolate Stout cake from Smitten Kitchen.  I didn't put ganache on it, because I had to carry it in to work, and it was great with a dusting of powdered sugar.  So great that I made it again the next week for my in-laws.  I also used Saranac Brewing Company Caramel Porter in place of the stout.  I did this both times, so I don't know how it compares to using stout, but it was delicious.

When will people be circling the cubicles looking for more cake?

Ha ha, yeah, James' birthday is Friday.  Like, in two days.

Tonight Lauren and I are attempting the first red velvet cake either of us have ever made.  We're using another Smitten Kitchen recipe (this one), because the chocolate stout cake came out amazing.

Let ya know how it goes!

Random Weeknight Entertaining

Whatcha doin'?  Anything fun?

Yeah, tonight we're having friends over for dinner!

Weeknight entertaining is not for the faint of heart, but a simple menu, some shortcuts, and dividing up the work by grilling the entree and asking the guests to bring dessert makes it totally doable! 

We're having

• Garlic herb cheese spread on baguette rounds
• Salad
• Steak on the grill (hot dogs for the kids, but Deuce will no doubt eat 1/4 of my steak)
• Lemon Spaghetti
• Steamed asparagus
• Booze
• and our guests are bringing dessert (I'm really pulling for cheesecake from Cheesy Eddie's)

I bought the cheese spread, because it's a weekday so I take shortcuts.  But I have made it at home and it's super easy.

1 pkg Good Seasons Garlic Herb dressing mix
1 C sour cream
1 C mayonaise
2 C shredded cheese

Mix it, spread it on baguette slices, and broil until bubbly.  Or, if it's a weeknight and you bought it pre-made anyhow, mix it up in an oven-safe baking dish until bubbly and serve with crostini or crackers.

Looking forward to a fun night in!