Chili Recipe

I have lots of recipes in my drawer. All of them are the creations of other people that have been downloaded from the internet or torn out of magazines. All of them but one...all but this chili recipe. And I am very proud of it *patting self on back*. And the big plus is Dave loves it (although he did wrinkle his forehead the first time I told him I was trying to make chili). It's a very hearty meal and is great when the temperatures start to dip (for me, that means below 70 degrees...my blood thinned out shortly after moving to Florida from New York).

Chili
4 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped*
3 teaspoons minced garlic in oil*
3 lbs beef for stew or stir fry steak cut in bite size pieces
1 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons chili powder*
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper*
4 cups beef broth
2 cans dark red kidney beans, drained
2 can diced tomatoes, undrained

Heat the oil in a large pot. Stir in the onions and garlic and cook until they are soft. Add the beef and salt and cook until the meat loses its pink color. Add the chili powder, cumin, oregano, and cayenne pepper and continue to cook for about 5 minutes. Add the beef broth, kidney beans and diced tomatoes and simmer, partially covered, for about 2 hours, stirring occasionally.

I like to put shredded cheddar cheese in the bottom of my bowl, then put in the chili and mix it all up. Dave just likes to add saltine crackers.

*These ingredients can be adjusted to your own taste.

August Trip - Ocala National Forest

Back in August, Dave and I visited my sister and brother in law in Archer (between Ocala and Gainesville) for a long weekend. We brought the ATVs as they live in a rural area like us, and you can ride the ATVs on the dirt roads. We also planned an outing to the Ocala National Forest. They have approximately 130 miles of trails that you can ride the ATVs on. We'd never been there, and neither had Chris and Rich. We had a great time. Some of the trails were pretty mild...long, wide and straight. And then some of the trails were very technical...high banked berms, tight turns and whoops!!! We had a great time the entire weekend. It was nice getting to see Chris and Rich. Did I mention Rich is an excellent cook?! OMG...the homemade pizzas were out of this world!Chris and Rich

Dave - I love this picture so much I had it printed as an 8 x 10

Me!!!

Rich - way out in front on the trail!