Hubbie's Chili

When Hubbie and I first got married, all he ever raved about was his family, or maybe its his Dad's?, chili.  He finally had a chance to make it and it was yummy!  Along the years, Hubbie and I have added our own "special" ingredients to make it "Hubbie's chili" and its still quite yummy!  We do cheat and use a little can called "chili magic".  We really wish we could get away from using that jar, but its just too easy to use it with all the spices and seasonings in it!  Maybe one day I'll be brave enough to try to make it from scratch!  So, here it is.... enjoy!



1 can of Chili Magic, traditional
1 lb of browned, ground beef
1 can of diced tomatoes
1 onion, chopped
1 can of kidney beans
1 can of black beans
a few dashes of cayenne pepper
a few dashes of green tabasco


Follow the directions on the back of the chili magic can (which I believe is brown and drain the ground beef, saute the onions and then add the can of tomatoes and chili magic!  Now...start dumping!  I've done this next part in the slow cooker or on the stove... so either works... basically you just want it to cook and simmer.  So, add the rinsed kidney beans and black beans to the pot.  Stir.  And then add the few dashes of cayenne pepper and tabasco.  Stir and let simmer.  :o)  If its too thick, I'll fill up one of the bean cans or Chili Magic can with water and dump it in the pot.  And thats it!  And its tasty!

Soup and a Great Investment

Hearty Homemade Beef and Vegetable Soup 

1 lb ground beef

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 large onion

1 clove garlic (minced)

1 can kidney beans or pinto beans

2 cans (14 oz each) chicken broth - about 4 cups

1 can chopped italian tomatoes

1 can tomato paste

1 cup frozen corn

1 cup frozen peas

1/2 dried italian seasoning

Heat oil in a 4 1/2 quart Dutch oven or soup pot over Medium Heat.  Peel and coarsely chop the onion, adding it to the pot.  Add raw beef and brown.  Drain any fat.  

Add garlic.  Drain beans and add them with the broth, tomatoes (with the juice), tomato paste and 2 cups of water.  Raise the heat to HIGH and stir.  

Add corn, peas and seasoning.  Cover and cook until boiling.  Reduce heat, simmer 5 to7 minutes.  

Serve with warm cornbread or grilled cheese sandwiches!

Lu's take on this soup?  Its yummy!  I got this recipe out of my favorite cook book Cheap.  Fast.  Good!  By Beverly Mills and Alicia Ross..  This has got to be the best cookbook that I have ever seen!  So many good and cheap recipes!  Go here for another recipe from this book!

This soup is good, quick, easy and cheap!  All of my favorite words!  I do not use a garlic clove- just because I didn't have any the days I made this.  I never use a whole onion- I'm THAT cheap-and it was fine.  I also just use a bag of frozen mixed veggies instead of the individual bags of each type of veggie.  I love the fact that this recipe includes kidney beans!  Such a wonderful addition to this soup!  It adds more to the soup than just the typical veggies!  

Enjoy!  And go buy this book!!!!  :)  

Ham Leftovers? Try This!

My handsome hubbie knows that I do not like to waste food at all, so when he saw the recipe (below) for a ham soup, he showed it to me!  I purchased a ham this year for our Christmas dinner and I try to get at least 3 or 4 meals out of a large piece of meat.  We ate ham with all the sides once and will have leftovers of that meal and then with all the leftover ham I made this soup.  Hubbie found it in the latest addition of Runner's World magazine- January 2010.

This Hearty Ham and White Bean Soup is very VERY tasty.  Don't let the name turn you off to trying this.  It does have cabbage in it and I will admit, that kinda scared me!  I decided to give it a try since the rest of the recipe sounded yummy.  It was super easy to make.  The thing that took the longest was chopping and washing the veggies.  Even my Peanut and Bubbie gobbled it up!

I paired the soup with some yummy 30 min rolls and man! what a yummy lunch on a cold winters day!

Enjoy!

1 tblspoon olive oil
1 sweet onion, diced into medium pieces
1 1/2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
2 large carrots, peeled, halved lengthwise and sliced thin
1/2 cabbage, cored, cut into bite sized pieces
12 oz lean ham steak, diced into small pieces
1 qt chicken stock
14.5 oz can of petite diced tomatoes
2 cans white beans, undrained
2 tblspoon fresh parsley, chopped

Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a soup pot.  Add the onion, saute until soft and golden, about 5 mins.  Add the italian seasoning and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute.  Add the remaining ingredients, then bring to a full simmer, skimming any foam that rises to the surface.  Reduce heat to low, simmer gently until the vegetables are just cooked and flavors blended, about 15 mins.  Stir in parsley; cover and let stand 5 minutes.  Serves 6.

Calories per serving: 270  Carbs:  32 G  Protein:  22 G  Fat: 6 G  

A few notes- I did add a tiny bit of italian seasoning to the onions, but since I had a can of tomatoes seasoned with italian seasonings, I used that for the majority of my seasoning.  It was VERY tasty with that can of tomatoes.  Also, I don't normally buy carrot bunches.  I buy the large bags of baby carrots, so I just cut enough to make the soup colorful!  Probably 20-30 baby carrots!