Mom's Chili

For whatever reason, I find that I'm making a ton of recipes with ground beef these days. Which is a bit odd, as we don't typically eat a ton of beef. But they're all recipes that freeze really well, which is perhaps part of what is guiding my choices of meals to make for post-baby days. I am going to try to make some other chicken and vegetarian meals before the baby comes so that we'll at least have some variety to choose from. But the freezer is slowly getting packed and I'm running out of containers to freeze things in, so we'll have to see...

This is another childhood recipe. It's yummy, filling and freezes super well. In winter, I often serve it with a bun of sorts and a soup or salad. But my husband likes it served on top of homemade oven fries... maybe in an attempt to re-create chili fries?? Which I don't think either of us have ever had... but anyhow... it's his little creation.

I remember making this when living in France years back, when I was really just learning how to cook. Jerome didn't have any chili powder, so I figured that I could just substitute cayenne pepper... clearly anyone who knows anything about spices knows that this was not a good idea. It was probably the spiciest chili I've ever had in my life... Anyhow, here's the recipe:

1 lb. ground beef
1 C chopped onion

Brown in a frying pan, transfer to a large pot and then add:

1 lg. can tomatoes
1 7 1/2 oz. can tomato sauce
2 cans kidney beans, drained
2-3 tbsp. chili powder
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. dried parsley
1 bay leaf



Bring to a boil, then simmer for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.