Saturday, November 19, 2011

AHH! A few days behind...


So I have already fallen behind in my challenge of daily posting. Let us catch up, shall we? This week was terribly busy, and I was all alone. PB was in Singapore as a chaperone for high school MUN students. The joys of living abroad. So between math night and the chili cook off for Movember, I didn't get the chance to update. So enjoy while I post several days in a row...

Let's start with the Chili for the Movember Cookoff. What is Movember? During the month of November, men all around the world grow moustaches in support for men's health. Look here for the US informational website: http://us.movember.com/about

Its GREAT cause, so if you haven't donated, you totally should. Next year, you should convince a dude close to you to grow one and raise money.
Our school is BIG into Movember. Almost all the men in our school participate, so we're a molicious school right now. Another fundraiser we did was a chili cook off. People volunteered to make chili and compete for the honor of making the best chili. Voting cost 5RMB and you could vote as many times as you'd like. I decided to enter with my white bean chicken chili, adapted from an Epicurious recipe. I didn't win, but got a fair enough amount of votes. Plus it was loads of fun and heckling. I remade some chili today for PB, since he didn't get to enjoy the cook off as he was in Singapore.

As for the photo, I apologize for the curtain, but as winter approaches, the only good place for natural light is our giant picture window. So be expecting a lot of my food pictures here from now on!

Also, here's the recipe for the chili, if you'd care to try

White Bean Chicken Chili
Ingredients
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 large onion,chopped
  • 4 large garlic cloves, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons ground cumin
  • 2 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1/2 teaspoon aniseed
  • 1 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
  • 1 kilo boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 5 15-ounce cans cannellini beans (white kidney beans)
  • 1 cup canned chicken broth
  • 1 can salsa verde, or 15 ounces home made salsa verde (I can't get tomatillos here, so canned it is)
  • 3 7-ounce cans diced green chilies
  • 1/2 cup whipping cream
  • Grated cheddar cheese- for garnish
  • Chopped fresh cilantro- for garnish


  • Preparation

    1. Heat oil in a large pot- about 4 liter size will do. over over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, cumin, oregano, aniseed and dried red pepper. Sauté 5 minutes.

    2. Push onion to 1 side of pan. Season chicken with salt and pepper and add to pan. Sauté chicken approximately 5 minutes.


    3. Drain beans; reserve 1/2 cup bean liquid.


    4. Add beans, broth, salsa verde, chilies, cream and reserved bean liquid to chicken.


    5. Simmer until chicken is tender and cooked through, about 15 minutes.


    6. Season to taste with salt and pepper.


    (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Reheat before using.)


    Ladle chili into bowls. Top with cheese and sprinkle with cilantro.


    THIS MAKES 4 LITERS OF CHILI! It would feed PB for quite a few lunches and dinners, so if you'd like to make less, just halve the recipe. Or you could have a bunch of mates over and enjoy this easy dinner together!




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