This has been a long time coming! Glad to be back on the chili trail after a few months hiatus ... Last post was to preview the ICS' World's Chili Championship in Charleston, WV. Now we have our winners, and I'd like to congratulate Maureen Barrett of Willow Springs, IL. Not only did she pull a major upset in the chili world with her victory, but she was so gracious in chatting with me late into the evening without really being sure who the heck she was talking to. Now she knows. And if I'm ever looking for a house in Illinois, she's the realtor I'm calling. All the winners can be found on the ICS' Web site at chilicookoff.com.
And now, on to something new _ and old:
Recently, I came across an article I wrote several years ago, and would like to share it with you. I think you will find it timely, and hopefully helpful.
Throw a real party for Super Bowl Sunday
Posted to: Around Town
© February 3, 2006
By RICHARD ROSENBLATT Associated Press (ASAP)
Takeout pizza? Off limits. So are wings, and we mean it!
If you're planning on tossing a Super Bowl party -- and who isn't? -- we absolutely know you will agree that nothing goes better on Super Sunday than a good ol' bowl of chili.
Yes, a blessed bowl of chili, chile or chilli (depending on where you live), with its welcoming aroma, rich flavors and soul-satisfying warmth. Mmmm.
Team trailing at halftime? No worries. An infusion of chili, and say a Margarita or Corona or two, and we're sure you'll be energized for a second-half comeback. Or you can just keep eating and watch the commercials.
Stirring up a chili party for your Super buddies couldn't be easier, either. We know, because we wrote the book on chili.
I am the co-author of ''The All-American Chili Cookbook'' (Hearst, 1995), the official cookbook of the International Chili Society (ICS). My wife, Jenny Kellner, co-authored.
We persuaded hundreds of ICS members, including founder Carroll Shelby (yes, he's the guy who invented the Shelby GT), into divulging their recipes. And now, a few days before the Super Bowl in deep-freeze Detroit, we've come up with a party plan of favorite recipes that will make you a big winner on Sunday.
A few notes about ingredients:
--We're talking Texas-style chili, here, which means NO BEANS!
--For meat, there's sirloin tip or tri-tip (a wedge-shaped hunk of beef at the end of the bottom sirloin) if you're ambitious -- and cost doesn't matter. Or go with coarsely ground meat (tell your butcher it's for chili). Turkey, chicken, venison, pork, antelope, buffalo and rattlesnake all have been used in chili, too.
--Cumin (a musky spice) is a must
--Onions, the bigger and sweeter the better. We suggest Vidalia or Walla Walla.
--Chili Powder. The easy route is to hit the spice section at the market and grab a few jars (Gebhardt's is the best, but any other brand will suffice). Chili powder, by the way, is a premixed blend of ingredients including cumin, garlic, oregano, salt and ground dried chilies. How much of each depends on the powder you pick.
And away we go:
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Tarantula Jack's Thundering Herd Buffalo-Tail Chili (this was the 1989 World Championship winner)
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
3 pounds beef, cut in small cubes
2 medium Walla Walla sweet onions, chopped (about 1½ cups)
3 large cloves garlic, minced
2 cans (10½ ounces each) chicken broth
1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce, Hunt's brand preferred
1 can (15 ounces) tomato sauce, Hunt's brand preferred
7 tablespoons commercial chili powder, Gebhardt's brand preferred
2 tablespoons ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
Salt to taste
1. In a skillet, heat oil and saute beef until no longer pink. Drain off fat. Put beef in your favorite chili pot and simmer with onions, garlic, and chicken broth for 1 1/2 hours. Keep the lid on and your hands off!
2. Add tomato sauce, chili powder, and cumin. Stir, replace the lid, and continue to simmer until meat is tender.
3. About 15 minutes before eating time, take the lid off and enjoy the aroma of the greatest chili ever to slide into a Melmac bowl. Add the Tabasco, put the lid back on, and simmer for another 15 minutes. Add salt to taste.
4. Now it's ready to serve. Give out Pepto-Bismol samples to all small children and women who wish to eat your chili ... Comb your hair, straighten your hat, and practice being modest before you receive applause.
Makes 6 to 8 servings (triple the amounts to feed 20-25)
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Of course, there's more to this than just chili. If you're really ambitious, the accouterments:
Colleen's Version of Debbie's Salsa
3 cans (28 ounces each) Redpack crushed tomatoes
1 medium red onion, chopped
1/2 bunch scallions, chopped
1 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped
4 fresh jalapeno peppers, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 red bell pepper, diced
Juice of 1 lime
Salt and black pepper to taste
Stir all the ingredients gently together and let them get acquainted for a couple of hours. Serve with nacho cheese-flavored chips and frozen strawberry margaritas.
Makes about 10 cups
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World's Finest Guacamole
2 very large, very ripe avocados, peeled and cut in chunks
2 dead-ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped
1 bunch scallions, thinly sliced
1 can (7 ounces) peeled green chilies, finely chopped
4 ounces bacon, fried and crumbled
Juice of 1/2 lime
Using a potato smasher, combine all ingredients except lime juice until well mixed but still chunky. Just before serving, stir in lime juice
Makes about 2 cups
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Eastern Corn Bread
4 cups sifted all-purpose flower
2 cups sifted cornmeal
1½ cups granulated sugar
2 tablespoons baking powder
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
4 large eggs at room temperature
3 cups whole milk, at room temperature
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/3 cup melted butter or margarine
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 12 X 8-inch baking pan.
2. In a large bowl, mix together flour, stir together eggs, milk and oil. Add to dry ingredients, stir briefly, then add melted butter. Stir again until mixed.
3. Pour into greased baking pan and bake for about 1 hour, or until top is lightly browned and a knife inserted into the center come out clean.
Makes 12 servings
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Long Island Margaritas
4 6-ounce cans (24 ounces) frozen limeade
4 empty limeade cans (24 ounces) tequila
4 empty limeade cans (24 ounces) water
2 empty limeade cans (12 ounces) Triple Sec
Working in batches, fill a blender with ice to the top, add ingredients and blend until slushy.
Makes 24 servings
Recipes from ''The All-American Chili Cookbook'' (Hearst, 1995)
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Think your chili is the best? The ICS invites to compete in one of hundreds of regional cookoffs with the winners qualifying for the World's Championship Chili Cookoff. There's been one since 1967, when it all started at Carroll Shelby's ranch in Terlingua, Texas.
Last year, about 10,000 chiliheads showed up in Omaha, Neb., where Doug Wilkey of Shoreline, Wash., won first prize of $30,000. Doug is a friend, too -- we judged the ''Miss Budweiser'' beauty contest on a memorable night in Newport Beach, Calif.
Here's the winning recipe he calls ''Dog Breath Chili'':
6 ounces regular breakfast sausage
2 teaspoons Wesson Oil
3 pounds tri-tip beef, cut into small pieces or coarse ground
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 can (14½ ounces) beef broth
1/4 teaspoon oregano
3 tablespoon cumin
7 gloves Gilroy garlic
2 tablespoons Gebhardt chili powder
1 tablespoon hot chili powder
1 tablespoon mild chili powder
5 tablespoons red chili powder
1 can (8 ounces) Hunt's Tomato Sauce
1 can (10 ounces) Ro Tel Diced Tomatoes and Green Chilies
3 Dried California chili peppers, boiled and pureed
5 Dried Cascabel chili peppers, boiled and pureed
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 can (14½ ounces) chicken broth
1 teaspoon Tabasco Pepper Sauce
1 teaspoon brown sugar
Juice of one lime
Salt to taste
Brown the sausage, dry and set aside. Heat oil in a pot, and brown the beef. Add the cooked sausage to the pot. Add the onion and beef broth to cover the meat. Boil for 15 minutes. Add oregano and half of the cumin. Reduce heat to a light boil, and then add the garlic. Combine the chili powders into a mixture, then add half of that mixture, and cook 15 minutes. Add the tomato sauce and Ro Tel with the puree from the fried peppers. Add the chicken broth for the desired consistency. Cook for one hour, stirring often. Add the remaining chili powder mixture and the remaining cumin, and simmer for another 25 minutes on low to medium heat. Turn up the heat to a light boil, and add the Tabasco, cayenne pepper, brown sugar, lime juice and salt.
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Find it online:
http://chilicookoff.com/
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Richard Rosenblatt is the AP's national horse racing writer, and co-author of ''The All-American Chili Cookbook (Hearst, 1995). He's been judging, organizing and competing in chili cookoffs for years.
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