Bean Chili with cornbread

You can do this two ways. On the stove or in the crock pot. I choose the crock pot because I can let that sucker be and go on about my business; the stove takes a bit of attention because, you know, stove…

If you are using the crock pot, put every thing but the beans in the pot and let it roll on high for about 4 hours or so before blending and adding beans. After that you can let it ride for as long as you want.

If you are using the stove top, do it this way:

½ onion chopped

1 carrot chopped

3stalks celery chopped

Sautee in oil until they begin to sweat and glisten

Add 1 whole chopped tomato, allow to soften and sweat

Add 1 can tomatoes

Let simmer. Pinch a good bit of salt between your index and thumb, sprinkle. Do that twice. Add some chili powder and don’t be stingy. I usually cover the top of the mixture with a noticeable layer. If you don’t have chili powder, make some with equal parts paprika and cumin with a dash of cayenne. Stir.

After the vegetables are soft, say 20 minutes or so, you can choose to blend the mixture to reduce the chunkiness, or just go au naturel and leave the texture. I do.

Add the beans, cover the pot, reduce heat to low and walk the fuck away. Visit to stir and check for flavour complexity. If it feels light, add more spices.

Cornbread

I like a savoury cornbread, so there isn’t much sugar in this one. If you are sugar free, just skip it, but be prepared for it to be a bit….blah. Its cornbread, man.

Mix dry ingredients in one bowl:

1 cup cornmeal

1 cup flour (you can use gluten free if you want, it just adds density)

3 T sugar

1T Baking powder

1 t salt

Mix wet ingredients in another bowl

1 Cup water or milk

1 egg, beaten

1/3 cup oil or melted butter if you don’t have oil.

Mix them together and bake in a greased 9 inch square pan at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes