Cincinnati-Style Chili

Here comes Fall weather and the first thing that springs to my mind is chili. Talking to my mother about a planned October visit for a horror-movie fest (this is my mother's passion, not mine) she brought up making a pot of chili. "There's just something about cooler weather," she said. To be fair, her weather is not going to be very cool since she lives in Florida, but we will crank the air-conditioning and pretend it is a chilly Midwest fall day.

The only question I have is whether she's thinking of Texas-style chili or the sort I remember from school lunches, which I really loved also. Since she grew up in Cincinnati I have a feeling I know which she'll pick. It was when looking through the archives to send her the links for choosing that I found I never shared this delicious recipe.

It is from Gourmet magazine and the only gussying up that I can detect is using black beans instead of the traditional kidney beans. I'm good either way. Love beans in my chili, although that horrifies and mystifies my Texas-bred husband and children. Good thing I'm adaptable!

Cincinnati-Style Chili

Step 1:

1 large onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 pounds ground beef

Cook until softened. Add beef and cook, until no longer pink.

Step 2:

3 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon sweet paprika
1 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon each: ground coriander, allspice, oregano
1/4 teaspoon each: cayenne, cinnamon, ground cloves, mace
1 bay leaf

Add all and cook, stirring, for 1 minute.

Step 3:

1-1/2 cups water
1 8-ounce can tomato sauce
1 tablespoon wine vinegar
1 tablespoon molasses
1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed

Add all and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally and adding more water if necessary to keep beef barely covered, for 2 hours, or until thickened but soupy enough to be ladled. Discard bay leaf and season with salt and pepper.