Chili!

Good morning!! 

It's another fall like day here today. It is also the season opener for our beloved Buffalo Bills!! My son is beyond excited!! We are looking forward to an amazing season this year. 

So last night, with the cool, damp weather we were having, we decided it was a great night for some warm and comforting chili goodness. To me, chili is very versatile because you can make it specifically to your tastes. You can make it mild or as hot as you want it. You can make it with a touch of (or more) sweetness, or you can make it savory. We prefer a mild, sweet chili. 

I always thought chili was one of those super complicated things to make, so I never used to make it. Until about 7 years ago, I watched friends of mine make it. They enjoy a very simple, basic ground beef, kidney bean chili. It was delicious and I couldn't believe how easy it was to make. That's when I started to make my own. I am not a fancy chef by any means, but there are times when I really do enjoy being creative in the kitchen. My chili is a product of my "culinary creativity". So, with that being said, let's make some CHILI!!!!!

We will start with the ingredient list:

1 lb Ground beef

2 Sweet onions

3 (1of each) Red, Orange, yellow peppers (or a green one can be used in place of one of the other colors)

Several cloves of Fresh Garlic

I use 3 different kinds of beans:

1 can Black

1 can Pinto

1 can Kidney

2 large cans of plain tomato sauce

2 cans of diced tomatoes with green chili's 

1 can (or frozen bag) of corn

As for spices, I use:

A few bay leaves (optional)

Oregano

Cumin

Chili powder (of course)

Onion powder

Garlic powder

Sazón (See pic)

And last but not least,  Brown Sugar

For garnish:

Shredded cheddar cheese or a Mexican blend

Sour cream

On a medium heat, I start by browning my ground beef in the pan. I usually use a 70/30 or an 80/20 ratio. The 80/20 will have less fat. Drain the fat as it cooks. 

Next, I put a little olive oil in the pot I'm going to use for making the chili. As the ground beef is browning, I chop up my peppers, onions, and garlic! 

Also on a medium heat, I add the peppers to the pot first. They can get a little soft while you're chopping your onions. After you chop the onions, add them to the pot. Then do your garlic. I love the wonderful aroma that come together as the veggies cook!! I also drop my bay leaves in at this point, if you're using them. 

After everything is relatively soft, I drain my ground beef really well and then add that right in to the pot. 

While that's heating through, I drain my beans and corn into a colander. I usually don't rinse them, but that's just me. I don't know if there is a rule to rinsing them or not, or if its a personal preference. LOL 

I love the plethora of colors that come together!! Once that's all drained well, then I mix my beans and corn with the ground beef and pepper mixture in the big pot. 

After this, I add in my cans of diced tomatoes and my cans of sauce. If you find its a little too thick, add a little water to it, maybe about a cup or so. 

Once you add in the sauce, then it's time to add the spices!! 

This is when the magic happens. If you noticed, I had no specific measurements for my spices. It's simply to taste with me. I start out with just measuring with my hand.  I sprinkle into my hand and then toss them in like so in the pic below. 

Once I stir that in, I usually end up adding a little more cumin and chili powder. Again, this is all to taste. After I get the chili tasting the way I want, then I add a few packets of my sazón. 

My cousin came to visit me from Florida last year. She did all the cooking when she came and she introduced me to this stuff!! She uses it in everything...soups, scrambled eggs, chili and on vegetables etc. It enhances the color and flavor of everything you make. You can use as little or as much as you like. 

I cover the chili and let it simmer for about an hour or so, stirring occasionally. About 30 minutes before serving, that's when I add in my brown sugar. If you don't have brown sugar, you can use a little white sugar, but I prefer the flavor the brown sugar gives. I start out with about 2-3 tablespoons and stir well. Again, it's to taste, but I find 3-4 tablespoons, especially if you have a large pot, gives a nice touch of sweetness. If you're unsure about your taste buds, then only add a tablespoon at a time. Like my dad says "You can always add more in, but you can't take it out."

Once you're ready to serve, I love cheddar cheese and a dollop of sour cream on mine. My daughter's boyfriend loves to eat it with the Tostito's Scoops tortilla chips! That's a fun and tasty way to eat chili!! 

Mmmmm, so so good!!!! It's warm! It's comforting and it's easy!! So this is how I make my chili. But with chili, you really can make it however you want depending on your tastes. This is one of those meals that you can play around with the favors and have something different every time. Oh, and it's great for halftime if you're watching football on a Sunday afternoon! 

Please feel free to leave a comment and let me know how you do chili in your house. Have an amazing Sunday!

Fall In The Air

Good Morning!

Fall seems to be on the horizon this morning. It is a refreshing, cooler and rainy morning here in WNY today. Last week we were dealing with some much warmer temperatures. According to weather reports, we were about 15-20 degrees above normal. Of course, as the old saying goes, it wasn't so much the heat as it was the humidity. So we were dealing with a few muggy and sticky days as well as nights. I do have to say that it's nice just to have the windows open, giving the A/C a MUCH needed break!! It seems like my poor window unit was going all summer long. I keep it on a thermostat during the day so the fur babies can stay comfortable as well. Of course, we also make sure everyone has access to plenty of water during the day!!

Anyway, it doesn't seem like the temps are going to get much above 60 degrees here today. I just asked my daughter if she thought it was too early in the season for chili for dinner on this cool day. She assured me that it is "never too early in the season for chili!" We have decided that it just feels like a chili day!!

So with that being said, I will be off shortly to get my ingredients for chili for tonight's dinner. I will blog about that a little later tonight. I hope everyone has a fantastic day!! 

Welcome To My World

Welcome to Crazy Cat Mommy’s corner! I have decided to enter into the world of blogging and see where I can take this next little venture.  When I decided to start this, my focus and primary goal was to make this page about animal rescues. I wanted to share heartwarming stories and with this crazy world we get caught up in, I am hoping to help restore some of our faith in humanity.

 I have decided that since this is my little corner of the web, I can pretty much share everything and anything. What I am hoping to accomplish is a fun and lighthearted page, as well as perhaps being a little informative.  So as I sit out on my front porch on this beautiful, warm breezy evening that I have been blessed with, I have decided to give you a little introduction. Since the page will primarily focus on animal rescue, why not start off with mine? I have seven fur babies in my home; six of them…..are cats!! We also have a dog who is about 12 years of age.

Pecan, our dog who is pictured below, was rescued from the Adopt-A-Pet shelter in 2004. We haven’t always been sure about her breed, but we seem to think she has jack Russell terrier in her and maybe some beagle, or another hound of some sort. We had just lost our beloved greyhound to old age a few months prior and I was ready to adopt another dog.  Back then, the “adopt, don’t shop” movement wasn’t as prominent as it is now. But let me just say, I am an advocate for the “adopt, don’t shop” movement today.

What does “adopt, don’t shop” mean? It’s about not shopping at pet stores that carry and sell puppies. Every time you buy a puppy from a pet store, you are supporting a puppy mill. I will save the topic of puppy mills for another day, but the bottom line is, they are horrible living conditions and the adult dogs are unhealthy, uncared for and overbred. The puppies are generally not in good health either. Again, I will discuss the puppy mill issue another day.  I really don’t want to throw my very first blog post into such a serious topic right out of the gate.

While I don’t always approve of professional breeders, I know that people will continue to buy from them. Professional breeders continue to contribute to the over pet population as well and that is what I have an issue with. However, if you are going to acquire a family pet, I would much rather see someone get their pet from a respectable breeder as opposed to supporting a puppy mill by purchasing a puppy out of a pet store.

Obviously if you are looking for a dog with a specific temperament, or showmanship lines, you will go to a breeder. My first choice though, will always be an adoption from a rescue or an animal shelter, especially if you are just looking for a lovable companion or a new furry family member.  Even if you are looking for something purebred, but not something for show, then I encourage you to check with your local shelter first.  25% of dogs in animal shelters, according to www.humanesociety.org are purebred dogs.  I know that’s not a huge percentage compared to what else you may find in shelters, but you’ll never know unless you go look.  My current dog and my last dog were both rescues. I mentioned above, my last dog prior to Pecan was a greyhound and we got him from a local greyhound rescue group.  Two of the best dogs, I have ever had. Although, I have had several dogs in my lifetime, and we have always been blessed with really good dogs.  I may take a trip down memory lane at some point and share the dog history with all of you.

But for now, I am going to bring my first post to a close. I am hoping for a successful blog and have several topics in mind. I also plan on introducing my readers to the family cats who are the reason I named my blog what it is. I hope all of you have an amazing week and I will write some more soon!