The Air Is Chili

Last week was miserably cold here, speaking as a southerner of course. When I say miserably cold, I mean that when you go outside your hands and feet get cold, and you really need to wear a coat at night. If I have to wear a coat that classifies as being miserably cold to me, and it's time to make something really warm and soothing for dinner. I'm still working on perfecting my chili, and I'm happy to say that I'm getting closer. My beef and beer chili had a good flavor, but not nearly the thickness I wanted so I studied and compared a few recipes and brought out the bits and pieces of each that I thought would bring me closer to my perfect chili. Taking a tip from my neighbor who recently entered and took something like fourth place in a local chili cookoff, I added tomato paste to thicken it up. And I've noticed a few recipes with cocoa powder on the ingredient lists, but cocoa powder in chili? What's that all about I wondered. I decided to find out, but I knew my Big, Bad Dad would have something to say about the addition. I figured if I could sneak it in he'd be none the wiser, and I was right. He didn't utter a word about tasting chocolate in his chili. I guess sometimes it pays to be sneaky because the addition of the cocoa powder seemed to add a nice depth of flavor. Thick and Meaty Chili 1 1/2 lb. lean ground beef 1 medium yellow onion, chopped 2 garlic cloves, crushed 2 Tbsp. chili powder 1/2 tsp. salt 2 tsp. ground cumin 1 tsp. dried oregano leaves 1 tsp. baking cocoa 1/2 tsp. red pepper sauce 1 can (28 oz.) diced tomatoes, undrained 1 small can tomato paste 2 cans (14 1/2 oz.) red kidney beans, undrained Shredded Cheese (optional) 1. Cook ground beef in 3 quart saucepan over medium-high heat until beef is brown; Drain. Set aside and cook onions and garlic in same pot on medium-high heat, until onions are translucent. Return beef to pot. 2. Stir in remaining ingredients except tomato paste and beans. Heat to a boil; Reduce heat to low. 3. Add tomato paste, stir until completely combined. Add beans and stir in. Cover and simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally, until to desired thickness. Serve in a bowl with shredded cheese if desired.