Two Bean and Beef Chili

I have found my soul's chili counterpart here in this bowl of steaming wonderfulness!



But in all seriousness, this Chili is fabulous. I served it Saturday night with a fresh tossed salad (hand tossed by the hubs) and home made corn bread. The Chili itself came together fairly fast, and the flavor is out of the world. Plenty of kick with a lot of smoky subtle tastes. Make this, go ahead DO IT!

Two Bean and Beef Chili
Source:Cooking Light

Ingredients
1 tablespoon canola oil, divided
Cooking spray
1 1/2 pounds beef stew meat (any type of ground meet will also work, I used fresh ground chuck steak)
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic
2 teaspoons finely chopped jalapeño pepper
2/3 cup Cabernet Sauvignon or dry red wine (I used the Cab)
1 1/2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 1/2 teaspoons ground ancho chile pepper
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground red pepper
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 (28-ounce) can whole tomatoes, undrained and chopped
1 (15-ounce) can dark red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 (15-ounce) can hot chili beans

Preparation

Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a large Dutch oven coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Sprinkle beef with salt. Place half of beef in pan; sauté 8 minutes or until browned. Remove from pan. Repeat procedure with remaining beef; remove from pan.

Add 2 teaspoons oil, onion, and bell pepper to pan, and sauté for 3 minutes. Add garlic and jalapeño; sauté for 1 minute. Add wine, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Return beef to pan.

Stir in remaining ingredients; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 1 1/2 hours or until beef is tender, stirring occasionally.

Coconut Curry Chicken Soup

This was dinner tonight. I decided to make this based on the fact that I have always been a fan of Thai cuisine (the fact that I had most of the ingredients already on hand didn't hurt either). It was quite good. The coconut milk makes it really creamy without it being too heavy.



Coconut Curry Chicken Soup
source: Cooking Light

Ingredients
4 cups water
3 cups fresh spinach leaves
1/2 pound snow peas, trimmed and cut in half crosswise
1 (5 3/4-ounce) package pad thai noodles (wide rice stick noodles)
1 tablespoon canola oil
1/4 cup thinly sliced shallots
2 teaspoons red curry paste
1 1/2 teaspoons curry powder
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
2 garlic cloves, minced
6 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 (13.5-ounce) can light coconut milk
2 1/2 cups shredded cooked chicken breast (about 1 pound)
1/2 cup chopped green onions
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons fish sauce -(MAN THIS STUFF STINKS!!! after buying it I stashed it in the back back of the cuboard)
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
4 small hot red chiles, seeded and chopped, or 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
7 lime wedges


1. Bring 4 cups water to a boil in a large saucepan. Add spinach and peas to pan; cook for 30 seconds. Remove vegetables from pan with a slotted spoon; place in a large bowl. Add noodles to pan; cook 3 minutes. Drain; add noodles to spinach mixture in bowl.

2. Heat canola oil in pan over medium-high heat. Add shallots and the next 5 ingredients (through garlic) to pan; sauté 1 minute, stirring constantly. Add chicken broth to pan, and bring to a boil. Add coconut milk to pan; reduce heat, and simmer 5 minutes. Add chicken, onions, sugar, and fish sauce to pan; cook for 2 minutes. Pour chicken mixture over noodle mixture in bowl. Stir in cilantro and chiles. Serve with lime wedges.

Pasta e Fajioli Soup

My Dad LOVES Macaroni & Bean soup. So when I was thinking of easy things to make when they are here, this was an obvious choice. If you make this to freeze I wouldn't add the pasta until you are about to serve it. The cooked pasta soaks up the broth and it isn't as good when it is reheated. The spices can be changed to suit your tastes. I made a few alterations to the recipe.

Pasta y Fajioli Soup
Source: All Recipes

Ingredients

* 3/4 pound ground turkey or beef
* 1 yellow onion chopped
* 1 small carrot chopped
* 2 cloves garlic, minced
* 2 tbs olive oil
* 6 cups chicken broth
* 1 can tomato sauce
* 1 can diced tomatoes
* 2 cans red kidney beans
* 1 tablespoon dried parsley
* 2 tablespoons dried basil
* 1/8 teaspoon red cayenne pepper
* dash of Tabasco sauce
* 1 tablespoon white vinegar
* 2 teaspoons sugar
* 1 box (16 oz.) Ditalini Pasta

1. In a large stock pot, pour the 2 tbs of olive oil (or two turns) and heat over medium heat, brown meat and add onion, carrot and garlic. Saute until onion pieces turn clear. Drain grease from pot.
2. Add chicken broth, diced tomatoes and sauce, beans and spices, reduce heat and simmer for one hour, stirring occasionally.
3. If freezing - allow to cool and ladle into freezer zip-locks by lining a large mug with the zip-lock bag.
4. If serving - Bring separate pot of water to boil. Cook pasta according to box directions. Drain and add pasta to pot. Heat through and serve with a heated baguette and fresh parmesan cheese.

Spinach & Rice Soup

Ok so this recipe is SUPER easy but really yummy if you like Spinach

1) One box frozen Spinach
2) One cup cooked white rice
3) 4-6 cups chicken bullion (more if you like more broth)

Cook bullion until water is at a rolling boil. Put in frozen spinach and cook according to package directions. While Spinach is cooking cook rice in rice cooker or in a separate pot (I got a rice cooker as a wedding present but before that I like to use the boil in a bag rice since I SUCK at cooking rice right). When Rice is done drain and scoop into pot with chicken broth and Spinach. Stir thoroughly. Serve with generous portion of grated Parmesan.

DELICIOUS!!