So What If It's Hot

So what if it's hot .... I still made chili and cornbread for supper! It just sounded good, and both recipes are super easy. (See recipes below.)


Here in Oklahoma, which is considered "South," they like their tea SWEET and their cornbread NOT SWEET. The tea should put you in a sugar coma, and the cornbread should immediately suck all moisture out of your mouth and make you pucker from dryness. Heh! So I'm used to making a more "cakey" cornbread with a little sugar in it. Well, Hubby, being Southern, doesn't care for sweet cake cornbread, and I can't stand the bland, no-sugar cornbread, so I compromise, and put in only half the sugar it calls for in the recipe.


So here's how supper turned out:


Chili in the big cast iron skillet. I usually use a Dutch oven for chili, and make a good amount that has some broth to it. I used a Dutch oven last time with this smaller recipe, but it really didn't make a whole lot and it's kind of thick. So this time I treated it more like a one-dish-meal in a skillet. It worked great.




Cornbread from the oven, just a small pan.




First, you split a piece of cornbread.




Spoon a generous portion of chili over it.




Add cheese if you'd like.




OK, so it's nearly 100 degrees out, the chili is hot, the cornbread is hot, and I'm adding .... "Arizona Gunslinger" jalapeno hot sauce! Hey, no matter the season, I like spice! And this "Gunslinger" stuff is goo-oo-ood.




Ready to eat!




QUICK AND EASY CHILI
(Courtesy of our friend Kim.)


1 lb. hamburger
2 cans Ranch Style beans with sweet onion
1 can Rotel with jalapenos.


Fry hamburger, drain off grease. Add beans and Rotel, heat through. Serve.


*I had trouble finding Rotel with jalapenos, but they had nearly every other kind! So who knows why no jalapeno Rotel. I'll keep looking. So .... I used 1 can Ranch Style beans with sweet onion, and 1 can Ranch Style beans with jalapeno, and 1 can regular Rotel.


CORNBREAD


1 c. flour
1 c. cornmeal
1/4 c. sugar (I use 1/8 cup so Hubby will eat it and not complain!)
4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 egg
1/4 c. vegetable oil
1 c. milk


Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Grease an 8" X 8" pan. In a large mixing bowl, combine dry ingredients, stir to mix thoroughly. In a smaller mixing bowl, beat egg, then add oil and milk, stirring thoroughly. Add to dry mixture in big bowl. Stir just until all is moistened, a few lumps are ok. Pour into pan, bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown. *Can double and use a 9" X 13" pan.