Chipotle Steak Chili and Cheesy Beer Bread

These were the two main things that I made for the Soup Swap on Saturday. The chili was pretty good I think...I can only eat a couple of bites before it gives me heartburn. I believe the chili recipe is from the new Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook.

Chipotle Steak Chili
-1.5 pounds beef, cubed as for stew
-2 onions, diced
-1 green pepper, diced
- 4 cloves of garlic, minced
-Two 14.5 ounce cans of diced tomatoes, undrained
-One 14.5 ounce can tomato sauce
-Two 14.5 ounce cans of beans (black, kidney, or pinto), rinsed
-1 to 2 tsp Chipotle Chile in Adobo Sauce (Latin foods aisle in a can, buy chopped if you can)
-2 tbsp chili powder
-1 tsp crushed dried basil
-1/2 cup water

In a Dutch oven, brown the meat half at a time in 1tbsp olive oil. The goal is really to sear the meat, it doesn't need to completely cook through. Remove to a plate. Add the onion, pepper, and garlic to the drippings and cook until tender. If there is quite a bit of grease left in the pot, you'll want to drain it at this point. I bought lean beef, and there really wasn't any left at all after the beef and onion cooked. Add 1 to 2 tsp chipotle chile in Adobo sauce. If you don't buy the chopped chile, you'll want to do that, bur try not to lose too much sauce. Stir well, and return beef to the pot. Add tomatoes, tomato sauce, beans, chili powder, basil, and water to the pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally for about an hour, or until meat is tender. Serve topped with sour cream and shredded cheese.

I served with Justin's all-time favorite cheesy beer bread recipe from Katie at Good Things Catered. It's seriously SO EASY! Justin didn't know that such a thing as beer bread existed before I made this bread last fall...now he asks for it all the time. I really, really encourage you guys to try it.

Now, here are my notes on the chili: Justin said there wasn't enough meat. Really, there was plenty of meat, but the cubed beef for stew that I purchased just came in HUGE chunks, so you only got two or three per bowl. So, if you buy the meat that way, you may want to cut it down into smaller pieces. Here's a Julia Child tip for you: in order for steak to sear well, you're going to want it to come to room temp first. So, pull out the beef while you're chopping the veggies. It also won't sear if it's damp, so it's a good idea to paper towel it off first.

Interestingly enough, this was my first time using a Dutch Oven. They had always totally intimidated me before--I'm not sure why. Anyway, it was this fear of the Dutch Oven that has always prevented me from cooking the one recipe that I've always wanted to cook but have been waaaaayyyyyyy too intimidated to cook, which is Julia Child's Beef Bourguignon. It sounds delicious, but it just seems like it would take so long, and there are so many possibilities for something to go wrong...not to mention so many pots and pans to clean after! Maybe someday I'll gather up the confidence to give it a try...