Official blog post #2.  Given this afternoon’s football extravaganza, my day has been focused around game day food and in our house, this means CHILI!  Years ago (maybe 20?), my husband and I would attend a party hosted by some work colleagues where the main focus was a chili cook off.  It took me four years to create a batch of chili that was awarded first place by that crowd and I have successfully used my optimized recipe to please others ever since, especially my family, when comfort food is in order.  My recipe results in a chili that tends towards the sweeter side (because that is what always won the contest).  It can be made with as much or as little heat as you like and certainly gets better the longer it sits. It can be done on the stove or in the oven and is also excellent made in a slow cooker.  Serves many!

SUSAN’S FIRST PLACE CHILI

Ingredients
olive oil (for sautéing)
4-6 oz diced pancetta
1 lb Italian sausage (approx. 6 links – I use 3 hot and 3 sweet)
1 lb ground turkey
2 lbs ground beef (I use 90% lean)
1 large onion, chopped
10 cloves garlic, minced
1 can tomato puree (28 oz)
1/2 c light brown sugar
1/2 c ketchup
2 tbsp cider vinegar
1 can red kidney beans
1 can lima beans
1 can butter beans
1 can black beans
3 cans Boston Baked Beans (I use Bush’s)
1 tsp dry mustard
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp salt
1 tsp chili powder (more or less to taste)
1 tsp cumin (more or less to taste)
1 dried chili (optional)

Making the Chili
Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in large skillet. Sauté pancetta until crisp, remove with slotted spoon, drain and set aside. Remove most of fat from pan and add onion and garlic and sauté until translucent. Remove and set aside. Add sausage (casings removed) and sauté until cooked through. Add ground beef and turkey and sauté until cooked. Remove meat to large bottomed dutch oven, add wet mixture and mix to combine.

Meanwhile, combine tomato puree, brown sugar, ketchup and vinegar. Combine dry spices together, mix and add to wet ingredients.

Drain beans, reserving liquid. Add drained beans to meat and mix well. Add as much of the reserved liquid from canned beans as needed to create desired consistency. Mix again and turn heat onto low. Bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally (do not let mixture burn on bottom of pan). At this point, you can either continue to simmer for 2-3 hours on the stove (you will need to stir every 10-15 minutes) or put the dutch oven in a 350 degree oven for 2-3 hours (or use a slow cooker).

To Serve
Ladle chili into bowls and serve with sour cream. I often provide tortilla chips or corn chips on the side!