Chili

The best chili I've had is at Zingerman's Roadhouse. You can pick it up by the quart from the trailer in front (the "roadshow"). It's far too spicy for those who like their chili mild and is nothing like the chili you'd find in 99% of diners. Rich in smokey chili flavor, this is another matter entirely. It's hot enough at the finish that you need to eat another spoonfull quickly to cool down the last one. It's so good, I'd probably eat it that quickly anyway.

The closest recipe I've found is the one below, which has been adapted from Martha Stewart's Chili Con Carne. The ancho chiles are clearly the secret to the smokey flavor. While I've had the best results when following the recipe precisely, it is good enough that even when not quite as good, it's still a mighty fine chili. If you can't find or don't have anchos on hand, other dired or fresh chiles will suffice, as long as you're careful not to make it hotter than you can tolerate. If you're using fresh, roating the pepper will give you some, though not all of the smokiness of the dried. I've made this most often with a roasted poblano peppers, of which I happended to score a box of ~50 of at the farmers market several years ago and still have some in the freezer.

The recurring dilema with a recipe like this is which beer to use. While it will be good with nearly any beer, the beer will affect the flavor and better beer will make better chile. That being said, if I had three beers on hand, I'd dump the worse two in the chile and save the best to drink alongside.

3 Ancho Chiles (dried poblanos, or use fresh or other chiles)
2 tablespoons Vegetable Oil
4 oz Pork, finely chopped
2 pounds Beef Chuck, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 cups White Onion, chopped (or yellow)
3 cloves Garlic, minced
1 teaspoon Cumin, ground
1 teaspoon Oregano, dried (or 1 Tbs fresh)
1 Bay Leaf
Salt, to taste
28 oz Canned Tomatoes, crushed or sauce (or whole/diced pulsed in blender)
24 oz Beer
1 tablespoon White Vinegar

Toppings: any combination of avocado, guacamole, sour cream, cheese, scallions, cilantro, tortilla chips, crumbled bacon

1.Toast chiles in a skillet over medium heat, turning often, until fragrant and puffed up, about 2 minutes.
2. Cut chiles in half, remove cores, reserve seeds, transfer chiles to a bowl, cover with boiling water and set aside.
3. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat.
4. Add pork; cook until browned, 3 minutes per side. Remove pork.
5. Add beef in batches, cooking until browned, about 3 minutes per side, adding oil as needed. Remove browned beef.
6.Meanwhile, put chiles and 1/2 cup soaking liquid into a blender; puree.
7.Reduce heat to medium-low. Add onion and garlic, and cook, stirring often, until softened, 6 to 8 minutes.
8. Stir in cumin, oregano, bay leaf, 1 teaspoon salt, and 2 tablespoons reserved chile seeds (more for heat, if desired). Cook 1 minute.
9. Add chile puree. Raise heat to medium-high and stir for 2 minutes.
10. Return meat to pot.
11. Add 2 teaspoons salt, the tomatoes, and beer. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium-high.
12. Simmer, stirring occasionally, 75 minutes.
13. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer, stirring occasionally, until meat is tender and sauce is thick, about 30 minutes more.
14. Discard bay leaf. Stir in vinegar.

Pasta Sauce

Among the strongest of family traditions, handed down from my Grandmother born in the town of Gubbio, Italy, is this pasta sauce recipe. Although I generally think most recipes can be tinkered with, I've come to find that this is best when followed to the last detail. Okay, there is one exception: it is even better if you throw in a slice of bacon. This is terrific on store-bought pasta, even better on homemade and other-worldly when combined with the family ravioli recipe. The better-half likes to eat is as a soup.

2 Tablespoons, Olive Oil
2 Tbs Onion, chopped
1 clove, Garlic, chopped
1/2 Pound Ground Beef
1 Celery Stalk, chopped
1 Carrot, chopped
Pinch Red Pepper
1 teaspoon Dried Basil, or 1 Tbs fresh
1/2 teaspoon Dry Oregano, or 1/2 Tbs fresh
1/4 Cup Red Wine
2 28oz Cans Tomato Sauce, or crushed tomatoes

1. Heat the oil in a 2 quart or larger saucepot over medium heat
2. Add the Onion and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes
3. Add the garlic and herbs and cook 1 minute
4. Add the beef, red pepper, celery and carrot and cook until beef is browned, 3 to 5 minutes
5. Add the wine and cook until mostly evaporated, 3 to 5 minutes
6. Add the tomato sauce.
7. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook at least 1 hour. Cover or uncover to control thickness.

Collard Greens and Bacon

This recipe combines two of the great joys in life: collard greens and bacon. It doesn't get any better. Collards freeze well and so by stocking up when they are abundant in late summer, you can enjoy this wintery dish repeatedly until fresh greens are available again in May. This is a perfect accompaniment to a side of grits or heaped on top of grilled polenta cubes. I was scarfing down a bowl of this and cheddar-chile grits when I discovered the 7th law of bacon: the key to eating less meat is more bacon.

Adapted from the Gourmet Cookbook (p. 541)

1/4 Pound (4oz) Bacon, chopped
1 to 2 Cups Onion, chopped
2/3 Cup Chicken broth
2 Tablespoons Cider vinegar
1 Tablespoon Brown sugar, dark
1/4 teaspoon Red pepper flakes, or 1 dried red chile
1 teaspoon Salt
2 pounds Collard greens, leaves stripped and ripped and stems chopped

1. Cook bacon over medium heat until juices render, about five minutes. Drain all but 2 Tbs fat.
2. Add onions and cook until soft, about 5 minutes.
3. Add everything but the collard leaves and simmer for 1 minute.
4. Add the collards, toss until wilted.
5. Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, 60 minutes.

Pressure cooker method: Follow steps 1-3 either on stovetop or in pressure cooker pot on browning mode. Add collard greens and steam until wilted. Stir and cook under pressure for 20 minutes.

Maple Bacon Beans

These beans are proof that some of the best dishes are really quite simple. Bean, bacon, onions, mustard and some maple syrup make a perfect combination. With some breadcrumbs on top or a slice of toast, it makes a great winter dinner. In summer, it makes a great side for picnics and barbeques. As with most things, the better the bacon the better the results. Tonight I used 2 slices of hickory-smoked bacon from Zingermans along with 4oz of salt pork.

Adapted from Gourmet Cookbook (p.269)

2 Cups (14 oz.) Navy beans, dried
7 oz Salt pork or bacon, whole or diced
1 Cup Onions, chopped
2 teaspoons Salt
1/2 teaspoon Black pepper
2/3 cup Maple syrup
1 teaspoon Mustard, dry (or 1Tbs wet)
4 Cups Water (or substitute up to 1 Cup white wine)

1. Soak beans in 2 quarts cold water in refrigerator for 8 hours or more. Drain.
2. Preheat oven to 300F
3. Mix all ingredients in an ovenproof 3 quart or larger pot or baking dish.
4. Bring to boil on stove.
5. Cover tightly and transfer to oven.
6. Bake 2 hours or until beans are tender.
7. Uncover and bake 60 to 90 min more

Pressure cooker method: Replace steps 3-6 by cooking all ingredients in pressure cooker for 40 minutes. Finish with step 7 in oven or on steam mode in pressure cooker.

pressure cooker

At my request, my mother bought us a pressure cooker for Christmas. Up until recently, had anyone asked me about pressure cooking, I would have given the vague reply that my mom used to can things in hers. I can picture it on her stove, the steam vent spinning and sputtering around on the top, emitting a steady line of steam. Several years ago there was an incident in which the cooker got stuck shut with a whole batch of what my mom said was her best sauerkraut. My dad was able to rescue the kraut by sawing off the top somehow, but she had to get a new pressure cooker. I didn't want it so much to can things, but to cook things rapidly, specifically beans and whole grains. I like to buy beans dried, both because they are cheaper, and often tastier, but I often forget to soak them in advance. Thus, the pressure cooker. In the fast few days, we cooked wheatberries (only 30 minutes!) and collard greens (20!). I also discovered that our cookbook, Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone (Deborah Madison) has many variations for using the pressure cooker. My model is especially nice, because it doesn't use the stove, has low/high pressure, and saute and slow-cooking functions.

Food goals

I do not believe in setting goals specifically upon the new year, but instead chose to make continual efforts to make my life, and that of my loved ones, better. That being said, I have a few things I have been thinking about in the past couple of months that I would like to keep in mind in the months and year to come. Inspired by many recent purchases, my sister-in-law, and my mother's gift of 3 jars of pickled beets upon our holiday departure, I would like to learn more about fermenting and preserving vegetables. Living in the northeast, there is a real lack of produce in the winter months, not to mention anything local. In the past, I have gotten better at purchasing large quantities of produce in the summer and storing these items to eat in the winter. However, this may not be the best way to preserve all items. In addition, I would like to work on incorporating more grains into my diet. I love them, but I don't think to make them as often as I should. I would also like to try making my own cheese, and find a great store to purchase free-range, organic, local meat products.