Care Packages

Originally posted 1/20/11

Good morning y’all.  That was my ode to Paula Deen;)  Loooove her!  Sooooo…many of you know that I recently moved from California to Nevada.  The overwhelming majority of my family and friends are in California.  I love it here in Reno, but it is hard to be away from family and friends, especially when they are going through hard times.  Sorry-I know that makes me sound like Debbie Downer.  But, I do have some friends and family going through some stuff right now, mainly illnesses.  My first reaction when someone is going through a hard time is to cook for them.  I like to bring over meals, so that they don’t have to think about that kind of thing.  When you are in the hospital all day with a loved one, the last thing you want to do is come home and cook. 

I really wanted to come up with something that I could send in the mail, like a care package.  I wanted it to be something simple, something that was basically already ready to go.  I came up with a chili recipe that uses pretty much all canned/bottled ingredients.  I have a “Cowgirl Chili” recipe that I have posted before.  My new recipe is my “Cowboy Chili”.  It is a little bit spicier, and not at all sweet, like my “Cowgirl” version.  It is all cans and bottles, and some spices.  This stiff can sit in a pantry for a looooong time.  The only fresh ingredient is ground beef.  Obviously, I am not mailing ground beef.  That will be the one thing that the recipient will need to pick up on their own.  This recipe is so easy to throw together, and I promise, it is still super good.  I will show you how I package it up, and how to make it.  And seriously, who wouldn’t want to get food in the mail?  I love getting any kind of mail, and food would pretty much send me over the edge;)

I have above 1 jar of Gourmet Rooster Smokehouse Bacon BBQ Sauce, 1 can of kidney beans, 1 can of Mexican corn (the kind with bell peppers in it), 1 can of fire roasted diced tomatoes with garlic, 1 bottle of beer, 1 bottle of Worcestershire sauce, 1 jar of pimientos, minced dried onion, minced dried garlic, chili powder and cumin, and chips and cornbread mix.  I measured out the correct amounts of dried spices and bagged them up.  I put ribbon on some of the ingredients just to make them a bit fancier.  I also labeled the dried spices.  They are ready to dump right in.  The only things not measured out are the beer and Worcestershire sauce.  Otherwise, everything is already in the correct amounts…..makes it so easy to throw together, even when your mind is on other things.  Also, the cornbread mix is the kind that just needs water, so the recipient doesn’t need eggs or anything;)

I also include the recipe (duh).  If you look closely, you can even see my typo.  I guarantee you my mom will;)  Like I said, this recipe is pretty much just dumping in cans and bottles, so yeah, super easy.  I will put all these ingredients in a box, along with the recipe and ship it out.  Since nothing is fresh or perishable, the person I send this to can make it whenever they want.  This would also be a great care package for a college student or someone that has just had a baby.  Trust me, I’ve had 2 kids and when you have a newborn….you could care less about cooking for your family.  This recipe is so easy, even my husband can make it.  And this is a guy that can’t even scramble eggs…..

I made this chili for my family last night and they loved it.  I will show you how I did it.

I browned ground beef (you could use any ground meat) with the dried onion, dried garlic and pimientos.

Once the meat was browned, I added in the cans of beans, corn and tomatoes.  I threw in the spices, Worcestershire, beer and BBQ sauce.  I let it simmer together for about 1 hour while I did something else.  Done.  This chili needs virtually no babysitting.  You dump in a bunch of cans and it cooks itself.  With a chili recipe this easy, there is really no reason to ever cook canned chili;)

This was the finished product.  We loved it, and I know that the families that I send this to will love it also.  If you have somebody in your life going through something…maybe send them a care package.  It shows them that even if you are far away, you are thinking about them.  Love ya, Beck!

I will give you the real recipe and then the recipe to send out.  The recipe to send out doesn’t have measurements because it isn’t needed.

Cowboy Chili

2 pounds ground beef

3 Tablespoons dried minced onion

1 teaspoon dried minced garlic

1 jar pimientos, 4 oz.

1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

2 Tablespoons chili powder

1 Tablespoon cumin

1 jar Gourmet Rooster Smokehouse Bacon BBQ sauce

14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes with garlic

11 oz. corn Mexican corn

16 oz. kidney beans

6 oz. beer

Brown ground beef, dried onion, dried garlic and pimientos in large Dutch oven, about 7 minutes.  Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, about one hour.

Care Package Cowboy Chili

2 pounds ground beef (not included)

1 bag minced onion

1 bag minced garlic

1 jar pimientos

1 Tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce

1 bag chili powder and cumin

1 jar Smokehouse Bacon BBQ Sauce

1 can diced tomatoes

1 can Mexican corn

1 can kidney beans

½ bottle of beer

Brown ground beef, dried onion, dried garlic and pimientos in large Dutch oven, about 7 minutes.  Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, about one hour.