Chili

5 lbs ground meat
3 cans cannellini or great northern beans, drained and rinsed
3 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 large onion, small dice
2 large carrots, small dice
1 small can tomato paste
1 28oz can diced tomatoes
2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, chopped
4 dried ancho chilis, stems and seeds removed
4 dried guajillo chilis, stems and seeds removed
10 dried arbol chilis, stems and seeds removed
3 cups chicken stock
Cumin
Coriander
Honey

There are tons of ways to make chili, and I'm not sure I ever make it the same way twice, but this is the general guideline I follow.  Some notes about the ingredients:

• You can use whatever meat you like; as long as it's ground this recipe works the same.  My personal favorite is a mixture of beef and lamb, but experiment for yourself and see what you like.  I also make a chili with braised chunks of meat, but this is not that recipe.  A note within a note about ground meat:
• Pick a whole cut and have the butcher grind it.  For beef, look for brisket or chuck roasts.  For pork, a shoulder roast (or Boston butt as it is commonly referred to).  This is the only way to buy ground meat.
• Dried chilis and cans of chipotle peppers in adobo can be overpriced or hard to find at your local big box grocer.  Find a Mexican grocery store and stock up on these.  If that's too much for you, stop by a Wal-Mart that caters to the hispanic population.  You'll find these items plentiful and cheap.
• On the topic of chilis, don't get bogged down in the type.  As long as you're using a mix you'll have a flavorful chili.
• And if the whole business of buying and preparing dried chilis is too much for you, you can always buy chili powder from the spice aisle.  Just know that your chili will never be as good as mine.

Also, be aware of what you're doing when handling chilis.  Ideally you want to wear latex gloves; short of that just handle them as little as possible and wash your hands immediately after.  

1.  Combine chilis and chicken stock in a sauce pot and bring to a boil.  Once the mixture comes to a boil, cover and remove from heat.  Let sit for 30 minutes to let the chilis soften.  Puree with immersion blender.  If you don't have an immersion blender you can pour the mixture into a blender; just be sure the mixture is cooled before you blend.

2.  Heat a dutch oven over medium heat.  Add a drizzle of olive oil and the ground meat.  Season with salt and pepper.  Cook until browned.  Remove the meat and pour off the grease.  

3.  Add more olive oil if necessary and add carrots and onions.  Cook until lightly browned, about 10 minutes.  Add chipotle peppers and cook another five minutes.  Season generously with cumin, coriander, and salt and pepper.  Add tomato paste; I generally use a little less then the full can, leaving a little to add later if I think the chili is too watery.

4.  Add diced tomatoes and chili mixture, bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.  Once you are down to a simmer, add in the browned meat and drained and rinsed beans.  Cook for 20 minutes to let the flavors combine.  

5.  Finish with a large dollop of honey to balance the chilis.  

Moroccan Lamb Stew with Cannellini Beans

The format of this dish has become a common theme for my cooking: some kind of slow cooked meat, vegetables, and beans. It's a one-pot dish, it's easy to make in large quantities, it keeps well, and it makes an easy lunch to bring to the office. Of course, if you make in large quantities, you usually end up eating the same thing for lunch most of the week, so varying the ingredients from week to week becomes a necessity. 

I was looking for a new idea when my mom suggested trying an Indian-inspired dish. I had never made Indian food before, but a quick Google search for "moroccan stew" provided a plethora of recipes to pull from. I didn't have many of the traditional Indian spices (tumeric, cardamom, cinnamon, anise, cloves, etc.) so I decided that buying a spice blend would be the most economical choice for this dish.  Of course, spice blends are economical for a reason: they're normally mostly salt.  Still, I wasn't prepared to spend $30 stock my cabinet with spices I didn't expect to use very often, so I forged ahead. After scouring the spice aisle at Whole Foods for blends that had all the spices I was looking for, I settled on this:

Despite the first ingredient being salt, this had all the other necessary spices and turned out to be quite good. The deep red of the blend gave the dish great color. If you have an extensive spice collection than you can make your own blend, but this is the next best thing.

My recipe uses lamb, but this would be great with chicken thighs as well.

4-6 pounds lamb shoulder
1 large onion, rough chopped
3 carrots, rough chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
4 teaspoons chicken base
1 quart water
4 cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
Punjab Red Tandoori spice blend
butter
olive oil
cilantro


1. Preheat a dutch oven over medium high heat and add olive oil and/or butter to cover bottom. Season lamb shoulder liberally on all sides with spice blend. Sear shoulder on all sides and remove.

2. Add onions and carrots and saute until soft, 7-10 minutes. Add garlic and ginger and cook for 2 more minutes. 

3. Add water and chicken base and bring to a boil. Stir to ensure the chicken base gets dissolved in the water. Return the lamb to the pot. Cover tightly with lid and cook in a 350 degree oven for three hours.

4. Remove lamb from pot and fork-shred. Meanwhile, spoon off excess fat from surface of braising liquid (this can be accomplished by resting the bottom of a large spoon on the top of the liquid, and slowly submerging it in order to get the fat on the surface). Once you have removed most of the fat, return the pot to medium high heat and bring to a boil.

5. Once you have brought the liquid to a boil, return the shredded lamb to the pot and add the beans. Reduce heat to a simmer and let cook for 20 minutes, stirring often to ensure the beans do not burn. Finish with chopped cilantro.

Black Bean Salad

This recipe makes a lot, as do most of the recipes you'll find on this blog. Feel free to cut it down, or do what I do and make a big batch on Sunday for consumption throughout the week.

4 cans black beans, drained

1 red onion, diced

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 yellow bell pepper, diced

2 jalepeno peppers, diced

2 limes, juiced and zested

1 bunch cilantro
cumin
honey

red wine vinegar

1. Put onions in a bowl and cover with red wine vinegar. I've never measured the amount of vinegar, although if I had to guess I'd say 2-3 tablespoons. For now just make sure the onions are coated with the vinegar to allow them to macerate. This will take the edge off the raw onions, which can overpower a salad such as this. Let sit for 10 minutes.

2. Add in the rest of the ingredients and mix well. Season with salt and pepper and taste. I usually find myself adding more vinegar at this stage, but let your own taste buds guide you.

Cannellini Beans with Sausage, Roasted Vegetables and Tomato Sauce

4 cans cannellini or great northern beans
1 28 oz can whole San Marzano tomatoes
4 tablespoons butter
1 lb hot Italian sausage
1 lb mild Italian sausage
2 yellow onions
2 zucchini
1 yellow squash
1 bunch fresh basil

Tomato Sauce:

1. Puree the tomatoes using an immersion blender or food processor. Cut one of the onions in half.

2. Combine the tomatoes, onion, and butter in sauce pot. Season with salt and pepper and a couple of basil leaves. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer with the lid ajar for 45 minutes. You will know it's ready when you see fat globules forming on the surface.

Roast the Vegetables:

1. Rough chop the vegetables and toss in olive oil and salt and pepper.

2. Spread evenly on baking sheet and roast in 400 degree oven for 30 minutes, or until well browned.

Brown the Sausage:

1. Put the sausage in a cold saute pan and set heat to medium. Cook until browned, about 5 minutes. Do in two batches if necessary. Remove to towel lined bowl when cooked.

Combine:

1. Drain the beans in a strainer and rinse well with water.

2. Heat a large pot over medium heat. Add olive oil to cover the bottom and saute the beans for a few minutes.

3. Add in the sauce, vegetables, and sausage. Toss to combine. Finish with chopped basil.

Roasted Vegetable Frittata with Roasted Tomatillo Salsa

8 eggs
1 zucchini
1 small yellow onion
8 oz. mushrooms, cleaned
1 can black beans
2 pounds tomatillos
1 large red onion
2 jalapeño peppers
2 poblano peppers
2 serrano peppers
2 limes
1 bunch cilantro

Frittata:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Rough chop the zucchini, yellow onion, and mushrooms. Toss with olive oil, salt and pepper and spread evenly on a baking tray. Roast for 20 minutes, or until well browned.

2. Reduce oven to 350. Heat a large ovenproof non-stick skillet over medium heat. Melt two tablespoons of butter and add drained black beans. Saute for a couple of minutes and add roasted vegetables. Spread evenly and pour in beaten eggs. Cook for a couple minutes on stove top to allow the eggs to set. Put in 350 degree oven for 15-20 minutes, or until eggs are set on top.

Salsa:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Rough chop tomatillos and red onion. Toss with whole peppers and olive oil, salt and pepper, and spread evenly on baking sheet. Roast for 20 minutes.

2. Place roasted peppers in bowl and cover with plastic wrap to trap the steam. Once cool, remove the skin and seeds.

3. Add the skinned and seeded peppers and roasted tomatillos and onion to blender. Add cilantro and the juice from the two limes. Pulse until you reach the desired consistency.

Lentil Soup with Sausage and Kale

2 pounds assorted sausage (I used bratwurst, hot Italian, and chicken cilantro)
1 pound green lentils, rinsed
1 medium sized onion, diced
2 carrots, diced
2 ribs celery, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 28 oz. can whole tomatoes (San Marzano if you can get them)
2 tablespoons tomato paste
32 oz. chicken stock
1 bunch lacinato kale, stems removed, washed, and rough chopped
Parsley (optional)
Lemon (optional)

1. Remove the sausage from the casing. Brown in a skillet until cooked through. Transfer to paper-towel lined plate.

2. Heat a dutch oven or heavy bottom soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, and celery and salt and pepper. Cook until translucent, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and cook another 2-3 minutes. Add tomato paste and stir vegetables to coat. Cook another 2-3 minutes.

3. Add canned tomatoes and stock, using a wooden spoon to crush the tomatoes in the pot. Add the lentils and cooked sausage. Season with salt and pepper, bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer.

4. After the soup has been simmering for 20 minutes, add the kale. Continue to let the soup simmer for another 20 minutes. If the lentils are cooked, the soup is done. If the lentils are still firm to the bite, let simmer a bit longer, checking on it every 5 minutes until the lentils are "al dente".

Finish with fresh parsley and a squeeze of lemon.

Pan Roasted Chicken with Roasted Vegetables and Chimichurri Sauce

2 bone in chicken breasts
1 zucchini
1 yellow squash
1 yellow onion
1 bunch parsley
1 bunch cilantro
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons red wine
Juice of 3 limes
2 jalapeno peppers
4 cloves garlic
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper

Chimichurri:

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly oil the jalapenos and roast for 20 minutes. Remove from oven, place in bowl, and cover. When cooled, peel the skins and remove seeds.

2. Wash parsley and cilantro and place in blender or food processor with the red wine vinegar, red wine, lime juice, garlic, olive oil, and roasted jalapenos. Pulse until smooth. Season with salt and pepper.

Chicken and vegetables:

1. Rough chop zucchini, yellow squash, and onion. Toss with olive oil and salt and pepper. Place in 400 degree oven.

2. Season chicken breasts over and under skin with salt and pepper. Preheat an ovenproof skillet on the stove over medium high heat. Sear, then flip and put in 400 degree oven. Roast for 40 minutes.