Chili con Carne

I decided to give this recipe 5 stars because it is good enough that I make it often. With equally good results, I have used ground beef, ground turkey, or the Morningstar Farms meatlike crumbles instead of the boneless beef chuck that is called for. In fact, if you want a vegetarian chili, the crumbles version is really outstanding.

As always, if you use really great ingredients, you will be rewarded. Great chili powder (the kind with added cumin, etc.) is a must, but you can vary the chiles to suit your taste. The recipe calls for fresh jalapeños, but I often used roasted New Mexican chiles.

If you are in a hurry, you can skip putting in the full amount of water called for, and you'll have a chili thick enough to eat in a half hour or so. But, if you have the time, adding all the water and cooking it down from there makes a very nice end product, good the day you make it, without the need to rest it overnight to develop the flavors.