It's a Chili Morning

I just returned from dropping the kids off at school and, after having driven for almost a half hour, the car still didn't get warm. It's a frosty morning with a clear sky, -2 degrees F, but it feels like -14 degrees according to the weather service. The sunrise was beautiful. As I looked to the east and my younger daughter commented on how the orange glow of the rising sun made her feel even colder as she looked at it through the barren branches of the trees we were passing, I felt a shudder going up and down my spine, too, and thought it's a chilly enough day to have chili. Dinner is saved!

Now I have to say that I didn't grow up knowing what chili was. My mother never cooked it. I remember once ordering chili at our family's favorite Argentinian steakhouse simply because it was on the menu and I was curious about it. But the server gave me a long look, and asked, "Chili?" as she crinkled her nose, so I reconsidered and settled for a filet mignon, a choice she happily approved of.

Then I moved here and everyone seemed to really love chili. Still, I had no clue what it was (something with beans?) or how to prepare it. That's when I discovered a little brown package in the grocery store's spice aisle that contained assorted chili spices and a number of recipes for preparing chili printed on the back. I read it and knew I could follow those directions. Bingo. Chili from a bag. We made chili like that for years. It tasted okay.

But then came the time for true chili revelation. As I power-walked my way to a slimmer waist on the treadmill one day, I watched FoodNetwork's Ellie Krieger prepare a healthy chili. It sounded good and seemed easy to prepare–I was all over it. THAT recipe became the new standard in our house for what chili could truly be. The only change I made to her recipe is that instead of using ground beef, I have always used ground bison/buffalo. It is a good chili recipe, quick and easy to prepare. Click on the link to see the recipe for yourself. It's what I'm gonna cook tonight!