Chili Tonight

And, chilly tonight! This is going to be the coldest night we’ve had I think . . .down to 18 or 19.

On the days I get Addie after school, I don’t end up getting home til a bit after 4. I always run by their house and get her clothes, her pillow, all the “stuff” she brings because I know if she goes there with me, she’ll keep finding stuff she wants to bring. Then I pick her up and we head back to our house. It takes about an hour each way.

So, getting home about 4:15, it’s too late to fix dinner. It’s actually a bit late for Vince and me to eat dinner but we make exceptions to get to spend time with Addie.

Tonight we’re having hot dogs, because I know Addie will eat those, and last night I made chili. I’m not sure if Vince will spoon some over his hot dog or eat it like regular chili. Addie will take a little chili, add a lot of cheese and scoop it up on the Frito Scoops and eat it like a dip. I’ll put my chili in a bowl, add sour cream, grated cheese, black olives, jalapeno peppers, then break up the Frito Scoops into my bowl. If it were just me, I’d buy regular Fritos, except for some reason, those seem hard to find these days. Crazy world!

I double the recipe so I should be able to have it for dinner tonight and then get two containers for the freezer. On a cold night, I love to bake a potato, cut it open, mash it up a little, spoon a bit of chili onto it. Add cheese, sour cream, jalapeno peppers . . yum!

My recipe calls for one Hershey milk chocolate bar (without nuts). Even though I’m doubling the recipe, I only use one candy bar. Because I’m not a fan of chocolate, I can be trusted with Hershey bars in the kitchen. Last night, I could not find them. I know I’ve made chili since I’ve been here. I know I didn’t use the last bar. I know neither Vince nor Addie found them and ate them so . . that means I put them somewhere safe and now I can’t find them.

Lucky for me, Vince bought a bag of chocolate Christmas candy that had both Hershey kisses and mini Hershey bars so I pirated enough chocolate from that bag to add to the chili pot.

The chili simmered for a couple of hours, then I let it cool, poured into a fridge container and it will be ready to heat and eat tonight.

Chad and Nicole are coming tomorrow or Sunday . . tomorrow I think, and we’re taking them out to eat because Chad’s birthday was last week and they had other things going on so we’re eating with them whatever day they come. I’m thinking they’re coming tomorrow.

For Sunday, I’m going to make Beef Fricot in the crockpot because . . of course, I just put it away yesterday but it’s easy to get it out again. This isn’t the recipe that I use but it’s close. I use a recipe that’s in a cajun friend’s cookbook. It’s the “old” recipe that only has beef, onions and potatoes. So, since it’s the crockpot, I’ll probably make it today and let it cook all day, then transfer it to the fridge and finish cooking it in the crockpot on Sunday.

Another thing on this week’s menu is tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches. I’m trying to make quick things that have leftovers because I’m sure Addie and I will be spending lots of time making cookies and candy and the kitchen may not be available for cooking meals. 🙂