it's a new year

Happy 2010!

Awhile back I spotted this recipe for beef and dark beer chili on Serious Eats.

I like dark beer, I like chili, so I thought this would be perfect to try.

I don't know about you but I tend to skim through recipes, sometimes omitting steps by accident and/or ingredients.

Well, my brain somehow didn't connect ground chuck with "hamburger", so I instead bought cubed steak.

Here's the recipe for the chili, I've put what I did in parentheses:
Beef and Dark Beer Chili - serves 6 -
Adapted from Bon Appetit, seen on Serious Eats

Ingredients

3/4 tablespoon cumin seed (used ground)
1/2 tablespoon coriander seed (used ground)
2 1/2 pounds ground chuck (used cubed steak)
1 tablespoon canola oil
2 onions, chopped (used 1/2 an onion)
2 red bell peppers, chopped (used 1 red bell pepper)
1 jalapeno, stemmed and chopped
3 1/2 tablespoons chili powder (used 1 tablespoon)
1 teaspoon chipotle chilies in adobo sauce, chopped (used 1 teaspoon dried chipotle)
1 28-ounce can whole tomatoes with juice, chopped
1 15-ounce can kidney beans, drained
6 ounces dark beer (like stout)
Sour cream (used plain yogurt)
Scallions, thinly sliced (left out)
Grated cheddar cheese
Salt and pepper

Procedure
1. Add the cumin and coriander seed to a small skillet set over medium heat. Toast the spices, shaking the pan often, until they darken slightly, about 4 minutes. Set aside to cool. Then grind.
2. Cook the beef in batches in a large skillet set over medium-high until it is no longer pink. Set the cooked beef aside for a few minutes. Drain off any fat and juices that collect.
3. Meanwhile, pour the canola oil into a large pot set over medium-high heat. Add the onions, red pepper, and jalapeno. Cook, stirring often, until very soft. This should take about 15 minutes. (on a gas range it took about half the time)
4. Add the browned beef, spices, chili powder, chopped chipotles, tomatoes, beans, and beer to the large pot. Stir well. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Cook for 20 minutes.
5. Season with salt and pepper. Ladle some chili into a bowl. Top with a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkling of scallion and cheese.

NOTES: For the chili I used a stout from a neighborhood brewery, which I've written about before here.

I liked the spiciness of the chili, it creeps up on you but doesn't keep burning for long. Since I didn't have scallions, I left them out and garnished with a little Italian parsley, yogurt & white cheddar.

I also made some cole slaw and cornbread muffins to go along with the chili. I had tried a cornbread recipe in the past, but I think the cornmeal I used was too coarse.

This time around I decided to try a new recipe and used one I found in "Southern Homecoming Traditions" by Carolyn Quick Tillery.

The original recipe is for "Jalapeno Corn Muffins", but I figured since I already added a jalapeno to the chili, I shouldn't make the muffins spicy also. I also subbed corn flour in place of the bulk of the cornmeal.

Here's the recipe for the muffins, again I have put what I have done in parentheses: makes 12 muffins

1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup yellow cornmeal (used 15 tablespoons corn flour + 1 tablespoon coarse cornmeal)
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2.5 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon paprika
2 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk (made my own with 1 cup milk + 1 tablespoon vinegar)
1/4 cup cooled, melted butter (equals 56 grams)
1/2 cup jalapeno jelly (omitted)

Preheat oven to 400F (200C). Butter 12-2.5 inch muffin cups (I used muffin papers). In a bowl, mix flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, salt and paprika. In separate bowl, lightly beat eggs. Add buttermilk and melted butter to eggs; beat to blend. Combine the buttermilk mixture with the flour and mix until just moistened.

Evenly divide half of the batter into the buttered muffin cups. Top the batter with 2 teaspoons of jalapeno jelly. Evenly divide the remaining batter amongst the cups and place in the preheated oven. Bake for approximately 20 to 25 minutes or until a golden brown muffin springs back when lightly pressed in the center and begins to pull from the sides of the muffin pan (I baked them for about 20 minutes and used a toothpick to test).

NOTES:The cornbread muffins came out good. Nice texture and flavor. Subbing most of the cornmeal for the corn flour was a good call. Though I don't have jalapeno jelly, I should try making these again with jalapeno bits in them.

It's a New Year, what are you eating?

p.s. I'm also sending this to Deb at Kahakai Kitchen for her Souper Sundays.

p.p.s. we also had the leftovers as "chili moco", I know the Zippy's version also has a hamburger patty---ours was just rice, chili and egg.