AN OJAI CHILI WINTER
No, not to be confused with chilly. Here in the Ojai Valley, chilly is a relative term – though to be fair, we drop down to freezing a few times in the winter. But, with a zillion Mexican and BBQ restaurants in California, chili is a staple. When I think of a winter meal, however, chili recipes don’t jump from my cookbooks. I think of pot roasts, rib roasts, or legs of lamb surrounded by crispy-on-the-outside, mushy-on-the-inside roasted potatoes or homemade soups enjoyed in front of a blazing log fire. My mind deliciously drifts to sumptuous winter holiday parties with baked turkeys to feed the multitudes, maybe a honey-baked, fresh or canned ham – perhaps a few roast ducks, or brisket!
Autumn was in full foliage in Northern California as my husband, Richard and I drove up PCH to Marin County where we were introduced to Deer Valley Chili at a small dinner party hosted by my high school BFF, Gisela, and her husband. We loved the dish and copied the recipe. Back home in L.A., winter (such as it is) was fast approaching along with its holiday season. It was time to start preparing for our huge holiday party, ranging anywhere from 25-50 people, depending on who flew off to Aspen or back home to New York (like us, many of our friends were transplanted NYers). Their kids were welcomed and grew up as part of our Christmas Eve tradition. In fact, when we sold our house to move to Ojai, we threw a goodbye pool party for all our friends and invited our home’s new young owners. Dear friends’ twin daughters who were twenty-something at the time, told our buyers they would see them on Christmas Eve, explaining that they had celebrated that night in our, now their house every year since they were five. The new owners were charmed, if not a little wary that they would indeed show up... but I digress.
As Richard loves to cook (lucky me) and is quite the chef, the menu for our yearly holiday party was his domain. That year he decided to try a different approach to his holiday buffet to feed a hoard. We’d become more health conscious and environmentally ‘woke’ by cutting down on red meat. (We also own a hybrid car, so we cut down on car gas and cow gas!) So, he decided on something poultry – free range, of course, but, no, not a “Thanksgiving” turkey with stuffing, but, a chicken or turkey cassoulet. Light bulbs flashed... why not a poultry chili (though I’m not sure the French think of any vat of chili as a cassoulet or even a casserole, but I’m digressing, again). From sea to shining sea, chili parties are always popular, so he opted to make Gisela’s Tex-Mex turkey Deer Valley chili.
OK, Deer Valley, Utah is not noted for a large Hispanic (less than 25% last count) or a transplanted Texas population, but this turkey chili (chicken can be a substitute) checks all the Tex-Mex cooking boxes ...tomato, black beans, corn, onions, and chili beans (of course)... so Richard multiplied Gisela’s recipe to feed a crowd of 30-40 with a side red cabbage and walnut salad (holiday colors)
and cornbread... Mexican cornbread, of course.
Whether you chili-out with a few friends or with a village, everything you need can be found at Ojai’s Sunday and Thursday farmer’s markets, Rainbow Bridge or, both Westridge Markets where you can also order your free-range chicken or turkey.
DEER VALLEY CHILI
(Southwestern Tex-Mex Chili)
Ingredients:
2 cups dried black beans, rinsed
10 cups water
1 teaspoon pepper
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
2 medium Anaheim chilies, seeded & chopped
2/3 cup chopped red onion
2/3 cup chopped celery
2/3 cup chopped red bell pepper
1 large leek (white part only), chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons dried oregano, crumbled
¼ cup all-purpose flour
2-1/2 tablespoons chili powder
2-1/2 tablespoons ground cumin
2 tablespoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon sugar
4-1/2 cups chicken stock or canned broth
2-1/4 cups frozen corn, thawed
4 cups diced cooked turkey or chicken – it’s this diced turkey or chicken that makes it different from traditional turkey chili recipes which use ground turkey…
(Richard roasted a
turkey for the occasion)
Toppings:
Grated cheddar cheese
Chopped red onion
Sour cream
Chopped fresh
cilantro
Directions:
Place black beans in
large pot w/ enough cold water to cover by 3 inches and let soak overnight.
Drain beans.
Return beans to pot. Add 10 cups water and the pepper and bring to
boil. Reduce heat and simmer until beans are tender, stirring
occasionally, about 1-1/2 hours. Drain beans.
Melt butter in same
pot over medium heat. Add Anaheim chilies, 2/3 cup chopped onion, celery,
bell peppers, leeks, garlic and oregano. Cook until vegetables soften,
stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Reduce heat to low. Add flour,
chili powder, cumin, coriander, salt and sugar and cook 5 minutes, stirring
frequently. Add 4 cups stock and bring to simmer, stirring
frequently. Puree 1-1/4 cups corn w/ remaining ½ cup stock in food
processor. Add puree to chili. Mix in black beans, turkey and remaining
1 cup corn. Simmer chili 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
(Can be prepared a
day ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Reheat before serving.)
Place toppings in
individual bowls on the table for everyone to pick and choose.
Makes 6
servings.
Obviously, Richard
more than tripled the recipe to make enough to feed the ‘throngs.’ Recipe is
easily doubled or tripled. For 30
servings, multiply by 5.
MEXICAN CORN BREAD
Ingredients:
1 cup butter, melted
1 cup white sugar
4 eggs
1 (15 ounce) can cream-style corn
½ (4 ounce) can chopped green chili peppers, drained
½ cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup yellow cornmeal
4 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
Directions:
Preheat oven to 300
degrees F (150 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x13 baking dish.
In large bowl, beat
together butter and sugar. Beat in eggs one at a time. Blend in
cream corn, chilies, Monterey Jack and cheddar cheese
In separate bowl,
stir together flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt. Add flour mixture
to corn mixture; stir until smooth. Pour batter into prepared pan.
Bake in preheated
oven for 1 hour, until a toothpick inserted into the center of the pan comes
out clean.
Makes 6
servings. Richard, of course, made more than one batch for our party.
Chili out! Happy Holidays and a wonderful New Year!!!
