Cincinnati Chili
O what to make for dinner on a cold and rainy night? I had a flash of inspiration: Cincinnati Chili. (Or as I knew it from college: “the chili they have at Steak N Shake.”) According to various web histories, this dish was created and popularized by Greek immigrants in Ohio in the first half of the 20th century. Basically, it’s a version of chili served on top of spaghetti, with lots more toppings piled on. My version tonight was quick and bastardized (based on this recipe), and I’m sure the purists are writhing in agony. To begin with, I didn’t BOIL my hamburger for two hours or puree it in the food processor. I forgot to add the chocolate. And I put the beans in the sauce rather than serve them on the side. Whatever; it was still pretty tasty. We had ours as “Chili Three-Way,” with shredded cheddar cheese piled on top. YUM!

In other food-related news, I discovered a great new Asian food blog last week while googling for a mapo tofu recipe. I even waylaid the staff at our local Chinese grocery to help me track down fermented black beans. I was bummed that I couldn’t find authentic Sichuan peppercorns… until the Snook came home and revealed he had some hidden in the spice cupboard. (Who knew?) The mapo tofu turned out EXCELLENT, so good I forgot to take pictures in our haste to gobble it up. But mine looked just like that guy’s photo anyway. Highly recommended.