Leftovers For Tomorrow's Chili

Hello fellow foodies! I have really been neglecting my food blogging lately... so hopefully this wonderful chili recipe will make up for that. I've also got a great dessert to post next, a chocolate trifle.

I went heavier on the beans than I usually do. I was going to make the chili in my crock pot, but I used so many ingredients that I had to move it over to a stock pot on the stove. (I cooked on a low temperature for about 4-5 hours.) My favorite thing about chili is that it's delicious & really easy to make.

1 can Hunt's fire roasted tomatoes

1 can corn

1 can black beans

1 can dark kidney beans

1 can light kidney beans

1 can refried beans

1 diced onion

1 diced green pepper

1 jar Newman's Own Garden Variety salsa

Handful of shredded Cabot habanero cheddar cheese

Just under 2lbs ground beef

McCormick chili mix

4 minced cloves of garlic

chili powder to taste

paprika to taste

garlic powder

onion powder

pinch of oregano

ground black pepper
Splash of leftover pasta sauce

Sprinkle of parmesan/romano cheese

I mixed the ground beef with the McCormick chili mix, some minced garlic, the onions, green peppers, and fire-roasted tomato sauce in a skillet. I then added the cooked ground beef, to the stock pot with all the other ingredients above. The longer it simmers, the yummier it will taste. This chili had a good kick to it. (Thanks to the extra chili powder I added & the habanero cheddar cheese.) I brought it in to work, and it was a hit with my co-workers.

Leftovers For Tomorrow's Zucchini Bread

This one is actually pretty easy & oh so tasty! **A great tip** When you are grating your zucchini - use a fork when you get to the end so you don't cut your fingers; you'll also have the added benefit of using as much of the zucchini as possible. You can also use more than two cups, if you are feeling wild. The last time I made this, I reduced the cinnamon, and added a tiny bit of nutmeg and allspice in its place. This recipe does make two loaves, so you should have leftovers for tomorrow! Freeze any bread you won't eat right away.

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup applesauce
2 cups white sugar
3 teaspoons real vanilla extract
2 cups grated zucchini
1 cup chopped walnuts (I use my food processor to chop up really fine, but that's just a personal preference.)

Grease and flour two 8" x 4" pans. Preheat oven to 325° F. Mix sifted flour, salt, baking powder, soda, and cinnamon together in a bowl.

Beat eggs, oil, applesauce, vanilla extract, and sugar together in a large bowl. Add dry ingredients to the wet mixture, and beat well. Stir in zucchini and nuts until well combined. Pour batter into prepared bread pans.

Bake for 40 to 60 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool* in pan on rack for 20 minutes. Remove bread from pan.

*Well, you should let it cool, but I prefer it right out of the oven, steaming, with (you guessed it) country crock. :)

Leftovers For Tomorrow's Popovers*

*Disclaimer: If you make them correctly, you won't have any leftover popovers for tomorrow! These are best right out of the oven, with some country crock...

These popovers are meant to accompany my beef stew recipe, but they are yummy anytime!

I will warn you that if you (like me) have a hard time following directions... your popovers may not pop as prettily as the three in the photo above.

I enlisted the help of my neighbor and best friend Kim (who you will see mentioned again and again as this food blog continues - Look forward to some of her cookie recipes for the holidays & something called "Delicious Squares," as soon as I learn to stiffen egg whites properly...)

Kim has a knack for following directions, where I just want to throw everything in a bowl, in the oven or crock pot, and be done with it... I make great chili (tomorrow's project) and meatloaf, but my technique makes really pathetic popovers, like eggy little lump muffins, rather than the beautiful hollow creations popovers should be... they still taste okay, but not really the way they should. When it comes to popovers, dense is bad, and light and airy is good. So how do you do it correctly?

Follow the directions... as annoying as they are... and you will have pretty popovers...

2 large eggs

1 cup all-purpose flour (do not use self-rising flour)

1 cup milk

1/2 tsp salt

Heat oven to 450°. Grease 6-cup popover pan with shortening. Heat popover pan for 5 minutes.

In medium bowl, beat eggs slightly with a fork or wire whisk. Beat in remaining ingradients just until smooth (do not over-beat or popovers may not puff as high). Fill cups 1/2 full.

Bake 20 minutes.

Reduce oven temperature to 325°. Bake 10 - 15 minutes longer, until deep, golden brown.

Serve hot (with country crock...)

Good luck!