Tailgating Chili

Hello Super Bowl!

In honor of the time tested tradition of sweaty men giving one another concussions and  tipsy fans laughing at ridiculously overpriced commercials, I wanted to try out a good tailgating recipe. What's screams football? Cold beer, spicy wings, chips and any sort of dip, messy cheeseburgers, gooey pizza and hot chili.

If only I were talented enough to be a home brewer... but I have to buy beer the same way everyone else does. And as for chicken wings, they are a ton of work to actually make and I would rather sit at a sportsbar and lick BBQ sauce off my fingers while someone else prepares wings. Cheeseburgers are amazing but I will save them for a hot summer night on the grill. Since I can't start to compete with Chicago deep dish, let's make chili!

I will give fair warning, my chili is not the most traditional. There are some extra green things in the recipe which aren't jalapeños. Blah, blah I wanted to be healthier and eat more vegetables. We all make mistakes when deciding on New Years resolutions but just go with it.  If you have kids I would suppose it's a great way to sneak in some vitamins. And I fully approve of being extra devious whenever it comes to children.

Anyway, chili.

Start by dicing half an onion and sautéing in a large skillet with ground turkey and chorizo.

While the meat browns, cut up the other half of the onion then chop a pepper, squash, and zucchini into bite sized pieces. In your large stock pot use a little olive oil to get some color on the vegetables.

Add beans, the meat mixture and spices to the vegetables. Mix gently and add crushed tomatoes and tomato juice.

Simmer for 30 min or until it heats all the way through, adding salt to taste. If you want it extra spicy you can add jalapeños.

I usually top it with sour cream, cheddar cheese and crackers or corn chips but feel free to experiment. Adding the toppings is half the fun!

Tailgating Chili

Ingredients:

• 1 pound ground turkey
• 1/2 pound ground chorizo
• 1 large sweet onion, diced
• 1 yellow squash, chopped
• 1 zucchini, chopped
• 1 bell pepper, chopped
• 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
• 24-32 oz tomato juice (low sodium if possible)
• 15.5 oz can kidney beans
• 15.5 oz can cannellini beans
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon dried parsley
• 1/8 teaspoon dried basil
• Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

In a large nonstick skillet, brown the ground turkey and ground chorizo with half of the diced onion.

Heat a large stockpot over medium-high heat. Drizzle olive oil in the bottom of the pan, then sauté the remaining onion and the rest of the vegetables until lightly brown.

Add the browned meat, canned beans, crushed tomatoes, tomato juice and spices to the stock pot. Simmer for at least 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Adjust the salt-and-pepper if necessary.

Top with our cream, cheddar cheese and crackers or corn chips.

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