Tex Mex Chili Recipe

Chili is a hotly debated subject, with it's own body of myth and folklore. The only thing certain about the origins of chili is that it did not originate in Mexico.

It is generally thought, by most historians, that the earliest versions of chili were made by the very poorest people around San Antonio, Texas.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef or half pork/half beef
• 3.5 cups cooked black beans or beans to your choice, drained
• 3-4 cups tomatoes, cut up
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste 1 chopped celery rib
• 1 chopped medium onion
• 4 cloves of garlic, chopped coarsely 1 chopped green or red bell pepper 1 cup fresh, frozen or canned corn
• 2 jalapeno peppers, chopped and deseeded (or more if you like it hot)
• 1/2 tablespoon brown sugar 1 bay leaf
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 2 to 3 teaspoons ground cumin 1 teaspoon dried leaf oregano 1 teaspoon paprika powder
• Freshly ground pepper and salt to taste Chopped green onions (for garnish)
• 4 cups of broth or water

Directions:

1. In skillet brown ground beef and transfer to your clay pot.
2. In VitaClay pot, add all ingredients and water or broth.
3. Cover and Set on Slow Cooking-Stew to cook for about 1 or 2 hours.
4. Remove bay leaf and stir before serving.
5. Serve with some sour cream, chili cornbread, polenta or over rice.

Makes 6 servings.

Health Note:

Sweet bell peppers are on the market all year in good supply, but they are somewhat more plentiful in the summer months.

Excellent source of vitamin C and good source of vitamin A and B.Evidence has shown that peppers may have some beneficial properties. Capsaicin in chili peppers, the predominant capsaicin, has been found to work as an anticoagulant, thus possibly helping prevent heart attacks or strokes caused by blood clot.

Small amounts of capsaicin can produce numbing of the skin and have an anti-inflammatory effect.