It's been a chili kinda day

I went to bed last night with a crippling migraine (of all the things I inherited from my mom, I had to get these damn migraines.. yea, thanks mom) when I got up this morning it was cloudy and damp.. and I still had a dull aching in my head. It was not the day full of baking or even really any kind of meaningful cooking like I was looking forward to. Today was one of the few days I was glad that The Kid likes to sleep until noon because I didn't feel bad laying in bed doing nothing but trying to ease this pain in my head.

I felt instantly horrible when The Kid finally got up and went to make some eggs and there were none.. so I got dressed and we took a walk over to 7-11 which is the closest thing to any kind of grocery I've got around here to get some eggs and while I was there I decided I would make some chili.. a pot of Mary's Magic chili was definitely the thing to make this dreary day a little better. It was nice to be able to do very little to have this great smell wafting through my little apartment, the only request from The Kid was "Please mom, no beans" (lol) so it was just a straight meat chili today.. yummy anyway :)

I'm hoping to get some baking done tomorrow.. I'm craving some pumpkin bread.

Food and music (these are a few of my favorite things)

The words of the late Andrew Wood rang in my head while I was thinking of a title for this post: "Words and music, my only tools". I've always loved music, since I was a little kid listening to the oldies with my dad and classic R&B and rock & roll with my mom. I fell into my own when I first learned about college radio, I listened day and night, I became friendly with the DJ's and even got lucky enough to host my own show for a few nights (that was a blast and I still have them on audio cassette) Of all places in my apartment my stereo is in my kitchen, yup, you read it right.. it's nestled in a little nook in my kitchen right under a shelf of cookbooks. I've got Q-104.3 on while I'm cooking or I've got a CD on and of those it's either something Grungy like Pearl Jam or the above noted Andrew Wood and his band Mother Love Bone or I'm listening to Country music.. Kenny Chesney being one of my absolute favorites that I came upon totally by accident one night after I moved here into this apartment and I was sitting in my room late one night by myself flipping through the channels and stopped at this guy who looked so much like This guy dated and I couldn't help but stare in awe. He was being interviewed about his new song that was being released "who'd you be today" and I sat and listened to that song as tears just came falling.. that song hit so close to home.. I kept listening to his music and I turned to country music because there was so much there.. it wasn't the old "my wife left me, my dog ran away" stuff that I thought it was.. it was life.. real life right there and I was in love. My friends and family think it's hysterical because after the 'grunge phase' I fell into heavy metal.. when my dad died when I was 15 it threw me into a bad place and I was angry at everyone for everything and I would lock myself in my room and blast this really dark scary music, I didn't want to be bothered with anyone or anything for a long time.. I say it all the time and no truer words have ever been said, but my family didn't really understand what I was going through at the time and if it wasn't for my best friend, Patty, I probably wouldn't be here to tell y'all this right now, she was there to talk to me and help me out of the hole I had fallen into. Tracy Lawrence says it in 'find out who your friends are"

You find out who your friends are,
somebody's gonna drop everything,
run out and crank up their car,
hit the gas, get there fast, never stop to think
What's in it for me�, or its way to far�...
They just show on up with their big old heart.
You find out who your friends are

When the waters high,
when the weather's not so bad,
when the well runs dry...
Who's gonna be there?

There's a reason I've been friends with the girl since I was 11, she's always been there for me, no matter what.

There is a theme song to every day of my life.. it's not all good, or fun.. but ya gotta make it through, right?

Today Kenny's new CD was released, Lucky old sun. I went after work and picked it up on my way home.. I had a pot of Chili simmering in the crock pot since last night so when I got home all I had to do was make some rice and The kid was in here finishing up his homework, so I popped the CD into my (slightly ancient) stereo and sat on my kitchen floor against the wall and just listened.. ate my chili and listened and sang along.. It's nice, it's not my usual Rock & Roll running around the stage Kenny (saw him in July '06 at MSG, it was awesome!) but a more relaxed, deeper Kenny.. and I really like it.. there's fun like 'Everybody wants to go to heaven' and more mellow 'down the road' I'm loving Every song on this album..

Food and Music.. and a little background about me.. Hey, it's how you learn about your friends, right?

I still tend to pull the heavy metal out once in a while.. like when the teenagers that live upstairs from me really start to piss me off with their music.. nothing like some live Metallica or Suicidal Tendencies to shut 'em up

Not just any Chili...

Yesterday it was cloudy, dark and chilly.. it was like the epitome of what a fall day is (and it's not even fall yet, how depressing) but it was the perfect day to go home and make up a pot of Chili.. it was on my mind from the minute I walked out the door (at 7:15) so at lunchtime I ran over to the supermarket by work and picked up some ground beef since I had all the other ingredients at home.. Now, this is a recipe from my buddy Mary, and I've seen the recipe a hundred times, but all the amazing reviews was what made me really want to try it to warm my belly and make the day a little less blah.. well.. lemme tell y'all that even though I got home at 6 and the Chili wasn't ready until 8 (and even though it still needed a little cooking it was unbelievable, and even better as leftovers tonight) It was AMAZING! I'll admit ti, I used to get those little chili seasoning packets in the supermarket.. Not anymore! Once you try this, you will be a convert for life and I'm smacking myself that I don't have a camera yet.. but I will soon and I'll post a picture next time (Oh, there will be many next times for this one) I can see me starting this early on a cold Saturday morning and letting it cook in the crock pot all day long.. YUMMY!!

So.. here it is..

Mary's Magic Chili Or, what she calls it;
Not Just Any Chili Chili

Cook and drain:

2 lbs ground meat
1 large onion

Add to dutch oven or slow cooker with the following:

1 28oz can stewed tomatoes
1 15 oz can tomato puree
2 15 1/2 oz drained kidney beans
3 tbsp each Worcestershire sauce and aromatic bitters(optional)
1 12 oc can beer or 1 1/2 c water
3 cloves garlic
1 beef bullion cube
1 tsp crushed red pepper
2 bay leaves (remove before serving)
1 T chili powder
1 tsp EACH coriander, cumin, thyme, oregano, and basil

Simmer uncovered for a couple hours on stove top or in the slow cooker for a few hours... Top with sour cream, grated cheddar cheese, or sliced green onions if you like.

Yea, it's really that easy.. you can adjust it to your tastes.. really easy, really good and it makes enough for a crowd!

Thanks Mary