Chili Night!

Given the fact that it's hotter than blue blazes outside, I have no idea why the hubby wanted chili for dinner one night this week. But he did. So I got out my slow cooker {that we got as a wedding gift} and used it for the first time today. I made the chili at 9:30 a.m. this morning and let it simmer in the slow cooker for 8 hrs until dinner tonight!

I'm not a chili lover {I don't like ground beef, but my husband does and when it comes to certain dishes he doesn't like the substitution of ground turkey...so this dish was all his tonight} so when looking for a recipe, I wasn't too sure of what ingredients to put in that would make a chili delicious. So I scoured the net to find a recipe online that was highly rated. I found this one {which is rated 5 stars by over 1,652 people and saved by 45,862!}. But not everything outlined appealed to us {you will probably raise you eyebrows a few times when reading through the ingredients as well} - so I made some adjustments {my modified version is posted below}.

My chili, that had been simmering for 8 hours, came out so good....

Condiments made it complete....

Ever heard of Chili Frito Pie?....Basically, just fritos added into chili. I had those to add in as well...

Mr. Wonderful loved the chili. And my mom also raved about how good it was. So I caved and served myself up a bowl to see for myself....

Delicious! And I made it! For the first time. And it was so good...and not hard at all. I now have another staple dish to add to my recipe keeper. I will definitely be on the hunt for more slow cooker recipes since this one came out so darn good!

And of course chili can't be complete without cornbread {I made them in the mini muffin pan so that each one has a bit of crunch around the edges!}....

Want the recipes? Here you go.....

CHILI RECIPE {altered from this recipe}:

Ingredients:

2 pounds ground beef chuck
2 large cans red kidney beans {1 drained}

1 large can black beans
1 large can diced tomatoes with juice
2 small cans tomato paste
1 large yellow onion, chopped
4 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon dried oregano
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon paprika
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 bag corn chips such as Fritos®
1 (8 ounce) package shredded Cheddar cheese
1 package of sour cream

Chopped green onions

Directions:
1.Heat a large pan over medium-high heat. Cook the ground into the hot pan and cook until evenly browned. Drain off excess grease.

2.Pour in all the ingredients then stir to blend. Reserve the Fritos, cheese, sour cream and the chopped green onions as toppings to go on top of cooked chili, if desired.

3. Cover and simmer on low for 8 hours {the longer the chili simmers, the better it will taste}.

Cornbread Recipe:

Ingrediants:

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup yellow cornmeal
2/3 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
3 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 egg
1 cup milk
1/3 cup vegetable oil

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Spray or lightly grease a 9 inch round cake pan {or muffin pan}.

2. In a large bowl, combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, salt and baking powder. Stir in egg, milk and vegetable oil until well combined. Pour batter into prepared pan or muffin pan.

3. Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Enjoy!