Chef Boyar-dont and The Dinner from 1974.

ok. Let's be real for a second here. How many of us go into the kitchen thinking we are Emeril Lagasse and walk out feeling like Chef Boyar-don't? umm, me. All. The. Dang. Time.

I don't know about ya'll, but growing up, I could barely even boil water. I never knew how to cook, nor did I even know where to begin.
Now that I have another person to feed in my household that doesn't like cereal and Ramen Noodles for dinner every night, I knew I needed to learn how to cook more that dry, unseasoned, grilled chicken and Kraft Mac-N-Chz.
So Tyler and I together set out on a quest to help me learn. I received hand-me-down cookbooks galore over the years to help me, but they have continued to do nothing but collect dust rather than help fill our bellies. We decided that we would take one new recipe per week from Volume 1 of the 1974 Cooking Light cookbooks that were passed down from my grandmother until we finished the full set (15 Volumes). This has not only given me a new found love for cooking, but a new idea for date night as well. Cooking together has easily become one of our favorite things to do and we may even sip on our favorite wine while listening to Cooking Radio on Pandora and dance like crazy buffoons. (You're welcome married people all across the globe. Next date night is on me.) Where was I again? oh yeah. The dinner from 1974.
So the first recipe we came across was chili. This was a funny one for me because I use the old, dried up McCormick Chili Seasoning Packets that have been sitting in our pantry for a hot minute and Kroger brand canned beans. Despite my gourmet ingredients, I always burn it. Every. Single. Time. But I refused to let this future batch only see the bottom of the trash can like every other batch before it's time. So I walked into the kitchen prepared to be the boss. So thankful I did because it made Tyler go back for seconds (which my cooking never warrants).
So without further ado, here is the recipe. We've secretly have eaten this for lunch everyday this week.


                                                       

CHILI

-makes 8 servings-

Ingredients:
1 32oz can of pinto beans (the recipe called for dried beans but we took the easier/faster route)
1 16oz. can of kidney beans
1 16oz. can of diced Tomatoes
1 8oz can of tomato sauce
1 green pepper, seeded and chopped
2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
1 large onion
2 cloves of garlic
1/4 cup of fresh minced parsley
1/2 stick of butter
1-1.5 lbs of ground beef
 1/4 cup of chili powder (we found if we use a little less than this, it tastes better)
1 tablespoon of salt
3/4 teaspoon of pepper
3/4 teaspoon of ground cumin

Step 1. Open pinto beans, kidney beans, diced tomatoes, and tomato sauce and place them in the crock pot set to HIGH. (We decided to use our crock-pot because it held the most for us and allowed us to not have to check and make sure the house wasn't catching on fire from the stove. Told you I was a hot mess in the kitchen. Anyways, a large soup pot would work just as fine.)

Step 2. Saute green peppers in the vegetable oil for 5 minutes. add onions and cook until soft. Add garlic and parsley. Stir frequently.

Step 3. In a large skillet, melt butter a lightly brown ground beef. Add beef to onion mixture, stir in chili powder and cook for 10 minutes.

Step 4: Add beef mixture to beans. Stir in remaining ingredients, cover and simmer for 1 hour. Remove cover and continue cooking for 30 minutes.

Step 5: Add cheese and sour cream atop and joyfully stuff your face.


Bon Appetite! I would love to hear how this recipe goes down in your own home. If you try it or tweak it and it turns out great, let me know by commenting below! If it turns into the bottom of the trash can art, let me know too. We can sulk and bask in our kitchen hot mess-ery together.