Almost Fall and Easy Weeknight Chili

The official start of fall is only three days away, and you don't need a calendar to tell you that, either. The signs are everywhere now.  Leaves are starting to change color, the air is crisp, chrysanthemums of every hue are blooming, and pumpkins are popping up all over the place!  

Every change of season brings with it new inspiration for my home cooking.  One of my favorite meals to prepare when the weather gets chilly, is chili!  It's one of my favorite comfort foods.  I have been making variations of this chili for my family for several years now, experimenting with different ingredients and seasonings; always trying to improve it.  I made this chili last night.  Here is my recipe...

Easy Weeknight Chili (serves 4)

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef

3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

1 onion, diced (approx. 1/2 cup)

1/2 green bell pepper, diced (approx. 1/2 cup)

1/2 red bell pepper, diced (approx. 1/2 cup)

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 cup diced tomato (fresh or canned)

2 cups strained tomatoes

3/4 cup water

3 tbsp chili powder

1 tsp ground cumin

1 1/2 tsp salt 

1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

1 can red kidney beans, drained (approx. 2 cups)

*you can use your favorite beans (black, pinto, kidney, or an assortment)

Optional: cilantro, sour cream, and grated cheddar cheese for garnish

Directions

In a large skillet, over medium high heat, cook the ground beef until it is browned. 

Drain the fat and set it aside.

In a large pot, heat olive oil over medium high heat and saute onion, bell peppers and garlic until onion is translucent, approximately 5-7 minutes.  Stir in diced tomatoes.

Stir in the browned ground beef, strained tomatoes, water, chili powder, cumin, salt, and pepper.

Cook over medium high heat until the sauce begins to boil.  Bring the heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes; with the lid on; stirring every so often.  

Stir the beans into the sauce.  Simmer for 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat. 

Garnish each bowl with chopped cilantro, a dollop of sour cream and grated cheddar cheese.

Mmm!  It was delicious and really hit the spot!

I will leave you with a photo I took this morning, out in my backyard, before dawn.  It is of the dazzling full harvest moon.  Isn't it magical?  

As always, I love to hear from you and appreciate all of your comments!

Happy Thursday and almost-fall!

Lasagna Recipe

After being spoiled for an entire week, it was time to get back at it in the kitchen.  Although it was a treat, not having to cook any meals while on vacation, I did miss my kitchen and home cooking.  I decided to make a lasagna.

Tomatoes, bell peppers, mushrooms, onion and lean ground beef

Brown & break up lean ground beef in a large skillet.  Drain fat.

In a large pot, saute chopped onion, peppers, and mushrooms in olive oil

Add cooked ground beef, crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, water, salt, pepper, and oregano and simmer over low heat

In the meantime, you can make the ricotta layer.  Mix ricotta cheese, grated Parmesan cheese, egg, and chopped parsley

A Lotta Layers...

In a 9x13 inch baking dish, spread approximately 1 cup of meat sauce and top with lasagna noodles

Top with more sauce and shredded mozzarella cheese

Top with second layer of noodles

Top noodles with more meat sauce

Gently, spread ricotta layer evenly over the sauce

Top with the third and final layer of noodles

Top with remaining meat sauce.  Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 30 minutes.  Remove from the oven and sprinkle shredded mozzarella cheese over top and bake for another 15 minutes.  Broil the top for a minute or two to give the cheese a golden color.

VERY IMPORTANT - Allow the lasagna to cool for approximately 20-30 minutes so it sets and slices nicely.  If you cut it while it's still hot, slices will be runny and not as pretty on the plate. 

The wonderful thing about lasagna is that it freezes well.  I cut up what was left into individual servings and froze them.  We actually enjoyed some of the leftovers last night!  

Friday Night Stuffed Bell Peppers

Usually, I decide what we will be having for dinner early in the morning.  This way, if anything needs to be defrosted, there will be more than enough time for it.  This past Friday, I looked in the freezer and saw some lean ground beef and thought, "What could I make with this tonight?".  The idea of stuffed peppers came to mind.  I immediately took out the ground beef to defrost.  I went to the grocery store and picked up some fresh green and red bell peppers.  I just love the bright color and taste of these!

I bought 3 red and 3 green bell peppers.  I cut the tops off and reserved them.  Next, I removed the seeds and washed the peppers under water.  Make sure when you buy bell peppers for stuffing, that they sit flat on the bottom, so they do not topple over when you fill them! 

Put your bell peppers and reserved tops in a large pot of boiling, salted water.  I added 3 at a time, in 2 batches.  Boil them for approximately 4 minutes.  This significantly reduces the time they have to cook in the oven.  Remove from the water and set them aside to cool. 

If you don't have a food processor, I really recommend buying one.  It is such a handy appliance.  You can use it to chop and crush veggies, make sauces, even make pie crust!  It really is an essential in my kitchen.  Here, as you can see, I chopped up one whole onion and 4 garlic cloves. 

Saute onion and garlic in 2 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil.

Add 1 1/2 pounds of lean ground beef. Stir and crush beef with wooden spoon until fully cooked.  Add salt, pepper, and seasoning.  

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Add 1 cup of cooked long-grain rice.  I used basmati rice.

Next, I added 1 1/2 cups of my homemade tomato sauce and 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese.  Stir until sauce is heated through and cheese has melted.

Now, take your cooled peppers and fill them to the top with the delicious ground beef and rice mixture.

Place the bell peppers flat in a 9x13 inch baking dish.  Fill the bottom of the dish with 1 cup of hot water.  Bake uncovered, in a 350 degree preheated oven for 15 minutes.  Remove from the oven and sprinkle tops with 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese.  Return to the oven for another 15 minutes or until cheese is fully melted.  You won't believe how gorgeous your house will smell at this point!

Remove from the oven and place bell peppers on a serving dish.  You can serve with tops on or off!

Isn't it wonderful how you can turn a simple vegetable into an edible treasure chest?  Each one hiding it's own little treasure inside!

I really hope you enjoyed this post.  The next time you have some ground beef lying around, and you're not sure what to do with it, maybe you can make some yummy stuffed peppers.  Thank you for stopping by my kitchen and I hope to see you again real soon!  I would love to hear your comments!  Happy Tuesday!