Chili

I had a wonderful weekend with T, road trippin' it to Dallas to see a friend who just had her first baby. It's been a long time since we went on a road trip, and it was much needed girl-time. Of course we had baby C with us, and any time with my beloved Godson is precious, but getting away from the routine of my life and getting out of town with my bestie was what I have really been needing. Seeing her college friends, and that newborn sweet baby was refreshing, and we even squeezed in some party-planning for Baby C's upcoming 1st birthday. I can't believe he's almost a year old. Sweet little baby.

But, as much as I enjoyed the time with T and getting away from home for a bit, I was glad to get home on Sunday and get back into my kitchen. and there was nothing "sweet" about my first creation.

Last winter I came up with my own chili recipe after some experimentation and tweaking. Unfortunately that hand-written recipe did not find it's way to my new apartment and so I had to start over again. Disapponting, yes, but if I did it once, I can do it again right? Absolutely!! And I did some things differently, and came up with what I believe is an even better version than the one I lost. It has a little bit of a bite to it, but isn't overly spicy. Aaaaand, it's so simple...pretty much throw it all in a pot and let it cook for a couple of hours.

Chili

A Sweet Beginnings' Original

Ingredients

• 2 lbs lean ground beef
• 2 cans of kidney beans, drained
• 2 cans diced tomatoes with green chiles (undrained)
• 1 8oz can tomato sauce
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 Tbsp chili powder
• 2 Tbsp ground cumin
• 2 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper

Preparation

1. In a large pot or dutch oven, cook beef over medium-high heat until browned. Drain off any excess fat.
2. Add remaining ingredients, stir, and simmer for 2 hours over low heat.