Homemade Chili

Chili is one of those meals that you can just throw everything in one pot, let it simmer for an hour and its ready to eat. Chili is also good for nice cold days or nights. This unfortunately was not a cold night when I made this but I had some hot dogs in my fridge and no chili to put on those suckers! So I decided to make homemade chili. It is easier to go to the store and buy a $3 can but I like homemade better. (I think) So here we go...

Get some ground beef ( I like 93% or better but you can use whatever you like) and brown it in a big pot. I used 2 lbs of beef because I always like to have some leftover for a friend or two.


You also need an onion. I like onion if it is nearly invisible or I just use the powder kind. Since it is always better with the real stuff I ground my onion up in the blender. Good trick for kids that don't like veggies but you want to sneak in the good stuff with a meal. (Not that onion is good for you...)

Just like I said in the beginning..Throw everything into one pot..One can of tomato sauce, one teaspoon of minced garlic

A couple pinches of oregano

A big can of pinto beans ( if you don't like beans you don't have to put them in.)

And this...Basically it is chili powder, cumin, paprika, red pepper flakes, and probably some onion and garlic powder. If you don't have this just do 2tablespoons of chili powder and 1 tablespoon of everything else and just a sprinkle of pepper flakes.

Mix it all together and let simmer for 1 hour. Then have it alone, with some rice, Frito's, fries or...

Chili cheese dogs!!! Yummy and enjoy!

I'm Back In Town...

Huge Ass Beers! That could be the phrase for the entire trip we took a couple of weeks ago. My boyfriend and I decided it was time to pack up for a couple of days and head down to New Orleans for a fun filled weekend and some good ole football. We spent the entire time eating good food and making new friends. We spend 5 days down in the Quarter right off of Bourbon St. so you can imagine what we did....

We stayed at the Dauphine Orleans Hotel. It was a great stay. There were some hiccups on my part but the hotel staff fixed them right away. We stayed in the Deluxe Main House room. It was a king size TEMPURPEDIC!! The pillows were soft and the bed sheets were white. Just what I love.

The room itself was not very big but still enough room to move around with free wireless and cable. There was a desk, which was useful since I brought my laptop.

A mini fridge was in the room also. We bought a case of water for when ever we didn't want to pay 1.50 for a bottle downstairs.

The bathroom was decent but not a lot of counter space. I did not like the fact that the shower liked to surprise you with either super hot water or cold water. I found out how fast I could take a shower on that trip.

There was also a TV and coffee maker. I usually use the coffee maker when I go to hotels but we just decided to go eat breakfast the whole time we were there so there was no need to use it. The storage underneath also provided extra space for us to put our clothes.

Of course New Orleans is knows for their strong drinks and good food, and we had both. There was this little place down the street from our hotel that served breakfast. We had to wait a little bit (which was aggravating) but it was good. And the funny thing about breakfast in LA is that there are always grits served with it. Since I love grits I had no problem scarfing them down every time.

We went to dinner one night at this place called Pat O'Brien's (apparently they are famous all over the US but it was the first time I heard about it) I got a trio of goodies. Red beans and rice, jambalaya, and crawfish ettoufee. And of course couldn't miss out on the HURRICANES!! WOW was it good.

And of course beingets with chicory coffee and steamed milk. Just as good as I remember when I last had it.

Another breakfast..See what I mean about the grits?!

SO I guess this is the part that I tell you what happened each day we were there. It took about 5 hours to drive there and when we got to the hotel the first day, we were ready to hit bourbon and start the drinking. Another thing about New Orleans is the music. Jazz and Cajun bands everywhere. It's all about the old school music and maybe a few clubs had rap music along the way.

When we got to bourbon it was around 4pm (HAPPY HOUR 3 for 1) and all of the bands were already playing in the bars and the bartenders where ready to get people drunk. This first bar we went to had a Cajun band and we sat down to have a grenade and listen to the good music.

When we were finished at the first bar we went a little down the ways to another and met this couple that was from England. It was their last day and we just decided to buy each other a round and talk it out. They were telling us that it would be nice for us to come to England and we agreed but it was a shame I didn't get their email. It would of been a great trip and to see them again. That night we went to bed at 9pm.....Great first day.

The next morning we got up (with my hangover and all) and went to Cafe Du Monde...Had the usual and walked around to see some sights.

Painting and street performers where already out at 9am in the morning. I always love going past the paintings and seeing how talented all the artist are.

Also went into see St.Luis Cathedral. It always takes my breath away on how beautiful this place is. The last time I went into this place was with my mom and I thought about her when I walked in there. You can pay to light a candle for a loved one or just walk around and look at the beautiful sculptures and front alter. Breathtaking!!!



The next night we wanted to hit bourbon again...I asked my childhood friend if she would meet me there because she still lives there and I hadn't seen her in 10years. We went into another bar and a band was playing. We sat down and just waited for her and met a girl there that had worked there before and was just hanging out. I struck up a conversation with her and she was just the nicest person...

This is her and as you can tell I am a little buzzzzzzed! HA! Good Times! Unfortunately between me trying to find my friend (who had made it down to the quarter ) and my boyfriend thinking I ditched him I didn't get to see my friend till a couple of night later. That night we went to bed at 11pm...Learning to pace ourselves each night we went out haha

The day after we decided to meet a couple of Texan fans (Houston Texans football team name) at this place called Rita's Tequila House. My boyfriend is a member of texantalk.com and was talking to a couple of people that said they were going to the game in New Orleans like us and wanted to meet up and maybe tailgate on Sunday.

Margarita!!! Strong!!!

Here is everyone... getting to know each other. GGOOO TEXANS!!

Afterwards we decided to go to a bar (AGAIN) and just drink and have a good time. This one was playing rap music and of course some skanky girls decided it was time for a booty contest. Kind of funny to watch. After we got tired of that we decided to go upstairs to the balcony and just do some people watching.




After that we decided to go take a nap because later that night we were meeting my friend to do some more partying. Here we are at about 1am having a good ole time. I missed her so much and really wish I could see her more often. Oh yea and that's a daiquiri in my hand (another famous drink besides the hurricane) Did you know that in New Orleans they have drive through Daiquiri places that sell the alcohol daiquiri's by the gallon??! I did but thought I throw that out there.

Another fun thing about my boyfriend is that every time through out the whole trip he saw someone with Texans gear on "representin" he said TAKE A PICTURE!! I thought it was the funniest thing...Take a look (this is only half the people I shot with Texans gear on)

The next morning was game day...Back in Houston my boyfriend email the St. Arnold's ( a beer brewery that makes specialty beer) and got us passes to the tailgating in New Orleans..It was huge and had everything there from drinks to food. AND IT WAS ALL FREE...My kind of party

This was the food station. There was red beans and rice, seafood, wings, and the best barbecue and potato salad I had in a while (sorry Texas it really was good).


A live band with a great music, the lady sang old and new music with a little Cajun twist.

And there where plenty of firefighters and policeman there soaking up the fun as well...Minus the beer



During the tailgating we saw a familiar face...I don't know what his name is but the guy on the left (Texan colors) is famous at the home games. He always sits in the bullpen (section right behind the goal line that everyone stands up for) and I guess New Orleans' famous representative "The Pope". Of course he is not a real representative of the pope hence the beer in his hand. He goes to all of the Saints games and sits in the front row with his wife in the Super dome. He was even asked by the mayor or New Orleans to say a prayer before that party after the Saints won the Superbowl a couple years back.

This is us...Very nice man and his wife. And sorry about the pic of me the sun was in my eyes and I hadn't started drinking yet..It was 10am

On the way to the stadium we came across this site. This is something New Orleans decided to build after they won the Superbowl. It is called Champion Square. The funny thing was is you see the while building to the left?..You pay 75.00 to go in the air conditioning and sit. That's what the "Pope" said anyway. He thought it was hilarious.

This is the inside of the dome. It was really crowded and I was glad Houston has such an open stadium. I was a hassle trying to get around everyone and find our seats. The onther thing that was bad were the steps going down to find our seat. I twisted my ankle trying to step down and no people I was not drunk. I swear!!

It was increadibly loud in there and I think it wasn't because the people are loud I think it's because of the dome shape. We did loose the game but it was a fun time.

There were somethings that I wish that I did like hang with my brother more, see someother friends, and maybe look at my old neighborhoods where I grew up but that just means that I will just have to make another trip down there next year. We decided that since we had such a good time in New Orleans that every year we will go to an away game in another city...Next year San Diego.....Hopefully

Green Chili Mac

So, I know I haven't posted in a while. I have been a bit busy with school and working so here is something that I made the other night that was worth posting. In September at a little Mexican restaurant called Chuy's they have a green chili festival. They made all of their dishes with green chilies and even sell them by the pound.

I looked up a recipe from this other blog spot that you can view here http://thewellfednewlyweds.blogspot.com/2011/01/chili-mac-with-corn-and-green-chiles.html . Very good recipe.

Let get started. You will need the following

Cheese, Garlic, Ground Beef, Tomato Sauce, Corn, Spices, Green Chilies and Elbow Macaroni

First you want to boil the macaroni and if want to do a little time management you can cook the ground beef while the mac is cooking. After the mac is done you should rise with cold water to stop the cooking process and set aside.




After the beef is cooked you should add salt, pepper, chili powder, minced garlic, onion powder and cumin and stir for 5 mins. After that you need to add the tomato sauce and a can of green chilies and simmer for 10.


Then add the mac, 1/4 to 1/2 cup of cheese and a can of corn. This is a funny picture because I decided to mix the whole thing in the casserole dish because my pan was too little.

After all is mixed nicely, set your oven to 350 and cover the top with cheese. I love cheese so I added a gracious amount. Bake for 15 minutes or until nice and bubbly.