Recession Chili

So, I recently lost 25 lbs. in a relatively quick time without doing much more exercise than normal (other than my usual walking everywhere).  It wasn't very hard, but I realize it's not for everyone because in order to make it work you have to like keeping obsessive records like this:


But, one thing that everyone can do is cook more of their own food which allows you to control what's going into it by picking organic produce, using sources of fat that are low in saturated fat, and reducing the amount of sodium.  This also fits in with the very now trend of being economical.  (It makes it more fun if you think of it in the same category as 'what all the kids are doing these days', like sexting.  That's aimed at you, Ms. Freund).

My mother has become obsessed lately with Super Suppers, and I understand the appeal.  However, as I'm just one person, not a family of 4, I just do it on my own at home on a smaller scale.

Behold, First Grade Chili:

The recipe is pretty simple, and it may seem odd to use tomato soup instead of actual tomatoes, but the recipe is aimed at getting children to like a food that is often spicy and intimidating to neophobic palates (hence first grade chili) and it's dear to my heart.

First Grade Chili:

1/2 lbs. ground chicken or turkey (lean)

1 large onion

1 can condensed tomato soup

chili powder, to taste

Cayenne pepper, to taste

garlic powder, to taste

salt & pepper, to taste

1 can kidney or chili beans

1/2 lbs. chopped carrots

1 red pepper

1 green pepper

1 bag frozen corn

any other veggies you have on hand 

Brown the meat with the onion and season lightly.  Pour off any fat (although there probably won't be much, especially if you're using chicken meat).  Season lightly with chili powder, garlic powder, Cayenne, salt & pepper (you'll be layering the seasoning, so think of this as just a first go). Add the soup, beans, and one soup can full of water.  Cover and simmer on low for 45 minutes.  Taste and adjust seasoning.  Add the carrots and simmer uncovered for about 30 minutes.  Add the peppers and continue to cook on low an additional 15 minutes.  Taste & adjust seasoning.  Add the corn and simmer just until heated through (unless you're using fresh corn it won't need to cook much more).

Now, it's ready to eat--but it's a lot of food, so here's what I do to enjoy chili in perfectly portioned increments.  I calculate the nutritional information (you can skip this step if you're not crazy like me).  A great resource for this is the USDA Database of Food.  Then I create little labels in Excel that I print out onto sticker paper.

That way, even if I'm take some chili out of the freezer months from now I'll have the info I calculated about it today readily at hand.

Once I've cut out all the stickers I use my food scale to portion the chili out into freezer bags.

And then I lay them flat in the freezer to freeze while ignoring the Hagen Dazs.

To thaw I tend to just take a bag out and leave it on a few sheets of paper towel in the refrigerator overnight, but if you want to get it done quickly, just 10 minutes or so in some hot water should do it.  Once defrosted you can just heat, garnish (I recommend pepper jack & avocado) and eat.