Days Alive: 12,207
Sweet Potatoes Diced: 4
Steps Walked: 3,918
Hours Slept: 2.5
Chicken Nuggets Eaten: 20
Tramadol Taken: 1
Cats Betrayed By Not Sharing Any Chicken Nuggets At All With Them Because I Am a Mean, Mean Mama Who Doesn’t Share Human Food: 3
Things I Forgot Today: 3
I’ve been kinda half-adding posts lately because I’ve just been out of spoons.
Reminder to self: write the damn post on Spoon Theory.
So, I’m exhausted, but I have a cute lady next to me (my Darling Wife), two cats resting on me (butt warmer and foot warmer, respectively), and the prep work done for the potluck tomorrow.
What am I making for the office potluck, no one at all asked?
Beef and Sweet Potato Chili. It is based entirely on the one found at Spicy Southern Kitchen.
Here’s the recipes, along with a not-mine photo:
Ingredients
- 2 pounds lean ground beef
- 2 sweet or yellow onion, chopped
- 9 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 green, red, or yellow pepper, seeded and diced
- 1-3 hot peppers (poblanos, jalapeños, Scotch Bonnets) of choice, seeded and finely diced (optional)
- 5 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 teaspoons celery salt
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 2 tablespoons hot sauce of choice
- 1 can sweet corn, drained
- 1 can black or kidney beans, drained
- 1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
- 2 (14-ounce) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes
- 2 medium sweet potatoes, about 4 cups, peeled and cut in a 1/2 inch dice
- red onion, sour cream, and/or cheese for garnish
Instructions (stolen from source site)
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Lightly spray a large nonstick pan with cooking spray and place over medium-high heat. Add ground beef and crumble it with a wooden spoon while it cooks. If it releases a lot of liquid/ grease use a spoon to discard it. After beef has cooked part way, add the onion, peppers, and garlic and continue to cook until beef is no longer pink.
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Add all spices to the pan and stir to coat the meat. Transfer meat mixture to a crockpot insert that has been lightly coated with cooking spray.
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Add all tomatoes and the chopped sweet potato to the crock pot. Stir to mix everything.
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Place the lid on the crock pot and cook on LOW for 6 to 7 hours or HIGH for 4 to 5 hours.
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Garnish as desired.
Freezes well, once made.
I’ll take pictures of it at the event at my new adventure tomorrow.
I’m currently reading Shirley Jackson’s The Lottery and Other Stories. I have four books on lend from the ebook library right now, counting The Lottery: Monticello: A Daughter and Her Father, by Sally Cabot Gunning; The Magic Kingdom of Landover, Vol.1, by Terry Brooks; and Melmoth: A Novel, by Sarah Perry. I’m hoping to review all of them.
I have to admit, I’ve been half assing posts to get more writing done. Especially when I can’t sleep, which is distressingly often. Yes, I hit 57,036 words. But the story isn’t done. And it isn’t done well, for some parts. So, I’m putting it aside for a week or two, and then will start rewrites during the winter holiday.
Commiseration and sympathy expressed to any of my fine fellow humans and meat popsicles that deal with chronic conditions.
I also came to the crushing realization that I will never, ever be the chef I wish I was. Pain, mobility, and dexterity all limits me. Horrifically. Even the prep work for a simple chili was exhausting.
Anyway. On a less depressing note, Since we both had to work late today, Steph grabbed some drive thru for dinner. Even though she was fried as hell from a day just as long as mine, she was sweet enough to sit out in the living room with me while I finished the prep work for the Beef and Sweet Potato Chili for the potluck. It was nice being able to talk and putter in the kitchen. I miss cooking something awful. And I don’t get much of a chance to be in the kitchen these days.
My holiday shopping is all but done! I just have to pick up one or two small, perishable items closer to the holidays. Like oranges, a pomegranate for Steph if I can, and some chocolates.
It’s after ten and I need sleep. I hope everyone has an awesome day tomorrow and an even better weekend.
