Kitap Yakıcı’s Reviews > Chili Nation > Status Update

Finally got around to making the amazing Venison Chili with Snowcap Beans as the Colorado recipe. Had to find and purchase venison when it was available and I could afford it. Ordered the Snowcap beans (a variety of pinto?) from Purcell Mountain Farms.

Made the Arkansas Hot Spring Chili-Tamale Spread. This is a recipe for a kitchen team. Took me four hours to prepare the chili for the tamales, the masa, the tamales themselves, the chili for the topping, and the "spread" itself, which is basically a layered casserole. It was my first time making tamales, which came out a bit dry. Like most casseroles, this is better the second day! Next up, California.

Going through this book recipe-by-recipe, which in this book also means state-by-state. I've finally committed to making the Arkansas recipe for tomorrow, for the purposes of assembling my grocery list and making progress on this book. Here's the hitch: the recipe, Hot Springs Chili-Tamale Spread, includes, per the name, tamales. Homemade tamales. They seem daunting, but I bet they're easier than I think.

Recipe #3, Arizona's "Sonoran Pork, Poblano, and Cream Cheese Chili" - simple, hearty, bright screen and mildly spicy. Not anything K would remotely consider chili, but she loved it nonetheless.

Cooked the chili for Alaska, "Line Camp Chili and Biscuits" - four-plus hours of prep, cooking, and clean-up, but She says it was worth it and I agree. Hearty, beefy, smoky, moderately spicy (for my palate), and the homemade biscuits round it out perfectly.

Fixed the Chili à la Whistle Stop, the chili representing Alabama. Easy and delicious - the addition of oats was unique and subtle in effect. The next recipe seems more complicated, and so might be on the menu in a week or two. And yes, I am going to go through this book methodically and alphabetically.