Chili Beans

It is the end on May and today in Salt Lake City it snowed, which made me want chili.

This might be my favorite meal ever.
Why?
Because it is super delicious and it takes less time to make then it does to cook a frozen pizza.
How do I know that?
Well, my awesome children refuse to eat this wonderful meal.
....and
since I had to go to the store to get bell peppers
...and
I'm a total sucker
...and
completely lazy...
I let them get a frozen pizza.

So in the time it took to preheat the oven and cook the pizza, I made this chili, a little pico de gallo AND unloaded the dishwasher.
I'm either totally awesome or super fast
or both.

anyway...


This is all basically stuff I keep on hand. You can use any beans you like or have in your pantry. I personally like 2 black, 1 pinto and 1 navy...but you could use all the same or anything your little heart desires...you could even make the beans from dried beans...if you have the kind of time...
You'll also need a can of spicy diced tomatoes, unless you don't like spicy and then just use diced tomatoes...you'll need about 1/2 the bag of frozen corn and a bell pepper and an onion.
If your child eats half of the bell pepper before you've had a chance to chop it, I totally understand.

I used a red pepper, because they were big and pretty and only 25 cents more than the small withered looking green pepper. I prefer the red pepper, but they're usually quite a bit more expensive.
Saute in a little olive oil until soft.

After you rinse and drain the four cans of beans, add to the peppers and onions, add the tomatoes and liquid. Add water or stock to barely cover the beans. Then add the chili powder and cumin.

Bring to a boil and then add the corn and bring back to a boil.

Then put into a bowl, leaving plenty of room.

For the cheese...

The pico de gallo...

And the fritos...yum...

Seriously...

I love it.
My mother calls it "dump" chili, but I don't recommend calling it that.

Chili Beans
1 onion, diced
1 bell pepper, diced
2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 cans white beans, drained and rinsed
1 cans pinto beans, drained and rinsed
5 cups stock
1 Tbl chili powder
1 tsp cumin
Salt and pepper to taste
1 can diced spicy tomato
1 cup frozen corn


Saute peppers and onions until soft. Add stock, seasonings, beans and tomatoes. Heat until boiling. Add corn and bring back to a simmer.
Garnish with Fritos, pico de gallo and cheddar cheese.

Tacos with homemade tortillas

Homemade tortillas make these veggie tacos amazing. If I were using a store bought tortilla, this wouldn't even be worth posting, but homemade tortillas are totally worth the effort.


Meet my friend masa.

Mix with water and salt, cover with a damp towel if you live in ultra dry moisture sucking Utah and then let sit for about 30 minutes while you get everything else together.

I'm going to do this in a progression...as I make it...so skipping ahead to the potatoes...

Potatoes, cumin, chili powder, onion.

Add a little oil to the skillet...umm...after you've diced the onion and potatoes...

Add the potatoes and onion to the skillet and saute.

Salt, pepper, cumin and chili powder to your desired spice level...yum.

Meanwhile make some guacamole and pico de gallo.


Make even balls of masa.

place ball of masa onto a piece of parchment.

place another sheet of parchment on top.

Press down...you don't want to press so hard you make it too thin, but you also want it flat...it may take some practice to got them exactly the way you like them. Luckily masa is practically free.

Peel away the parchment.

Cook in a dry cast iron skillet...I'm sure another kind would work, but it's the only thing I've ever used...i have the gas burner set on 8. Cook each side for 1 minute.

I picked an awfully ugly tortilla to photograph, but I am not perfect.

Yum.
As I cook them, I stick them in a towel. It helps keep them hot and sort of steams them, which softens them a bit.

Here is all the stuff...pico, guacamole, sauteed potatoes, shredded cheese, black beans and corn.

This might be my favorite meal ever.

True love.

Tortillas
2 cups masa
1 1/4-1/2 cups water
1/2 tsp salt

Mix together and cover. Let sit for 30 minutes.
Divide into 16 balls and flatten with a press or rolling pin (eek!).Cook on each side for a minute.
***Occasionally the tortilla will bubble up with air on the first side. You can sort of push it down, then cook the other side. You may need to cook the first side for an extra 10-20 seconds.

Sauteed Potatoes
6-8 yukon gold potatoes, diced small
1 onion, diced
salt and pepper to taste
1 tsp cumin
1 tbl chili powder
2-3 Tbl vegetable oil

Sautee until brown and crispy

Indoor S'mores

Remember how the point of this blog is to chronicle healthy food choices for my children...me too.

I'm a sucker for marshmallow-y cereal treats, but these are by far my favorite. I made these along with the nutty-o's for my friend last week. There are so many different recipes out there for these, but this is the one I use.


Golden Graham cereal, butter, milk chocolate chips, marshmallows and corn syrup.


Melt a stick of butter and add 1/4 cup corn syrup.


I use a whole 12 oz. bag of milk chocolate chips and melt together.


Then add all but about 1/4 of the bag of marshmallows.


I could probably just eat it like this, but don't...stir in the cereal and the remianing marshmallows.


Then press it into a prepared pan.
Let cool.
Enjoy.

Indoor S'mores

1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup corn syrup
12 oz. milk chocolate chips
1 bag marshmallows
8 cups golden graham cereal

Melt butter in sauce pan. Add corn syrup and chocolate chips, melt together. Add 3/4 of the bag of marshmallows and melt with the chocolate and butter mixture. Stir in cereal and remaining marshmallows. Press into a prepared 9x13 pan. Cool completely before cutting.

Margherita Pizza

I lied. I didn't make my own crust like I promised...but I really wanted pizza. There just isn't time during the day to make my own crust unless I do it on the weekend. Excuses...excuses...I'm full of them...


Refrigerated dough, fresh tomato, mozzarella, a little sauce, a little basil...in my opinion, very traditional.


I made a second one with half just cheese and pepperoni for the boys...I'm a sucker.


Sprinkle a little flour on your counter top.


Roll out the dough. I put it on a cookie sheet because last time I used the pizza stone it was a disaster. I'm not sure this worked any better.


I chopped a bunch of garlic and mixed it into a little live oil.


And then spread it on to the edges of the pizza crust. Yum!


Spread a little marinara across the crust. I had some leftover sauce from work, but anything would do.


Tomatoes and mozzarella and a little fresh ground pepper.


Grate fresh Parmesan and then top with the fresh basil...you know on second thought...add the basil AFTER you take it out of the oven. I think it will stay nicer.


When the dough is firm enough, slide it off of the cookie sheet and on to the oven racks to cook the bottom of the crust.


Deliciousness.


Perfection.

There isn't really a recipe...

for one pizza I used about

1 prepared dough ball
2/3 cup marinara sauce
2 roma tomatoes, sliced
6 slices fresh mozzarella
1/2 cup grated parmesan
12 basil leaves
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
salt and pepper

Baked according to crust directions. My children gobbled up their pizza, because who doesn't adore pizza?

Cauliflower Popcorn

I found this recipe on a great website called veggication. I thought it looked great and I was sure using the name my kids would eat it. My kids weren't fooled, but they each ate a piece. I thought it was delicious though!


First you have to make bread crumbs. I had about a third of a loaf of bread. I just shaved off the crust to make it easier to crumb.

See, crust free.

Throw it in to the food processor, or if you're too lazy to get it out, then the blender.

Get the crumbs on to a baking sheet.

Now they're toasted. Looking back, I should have pulsed them again really quickly. They would have stuck to the cauliflower better, I didn't...but it was still pretty tasty.

You're going to mix the cauliflower with a little oil, water, sugar, salt and pepper.

Tada.

Then stir in the breadcrumbs.

Put the mixture on to a baking sheet.

Yum.

This is so good. I will admit I had to add a little more salt and I wish I had made the breadcrumbs a little smaller...I think it would have given me the true popcorn affect.

Cauliflower Popcorn
courtesy of veggication
1 large head of cauliflower cut into small florets
1/2 cup of Panko breadcrumbs
2 Tbsp water
3 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp Black Pepper


Directions
* Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
* In a large bowl, combine the olive oil, water, salt, sugar and black pepper, then add the cauliflower florets and toss well.
* Add in the breadcrumbs and toss.
* Spread the cauliflower florets on a baking sheet and roast for 35 min, turning 3 or 4 times, until most of each piece has turned golden brown.