Last night's dinner could have been vegetarian but it wasn't. It's kind of difficult to get a vegetarian meal by the big guy as he's such a carnivore, so I added half a pound of very lean ground pork to my pot of "vegetarian" chili.
This particular recipe is adapted from the South Beach Diet Cookbook and I've got to admit, it's not bad even though it's what I call cheater chili. Living in the southwest so close to the Mexican border, we learn to spot the cheater stuff versus the real thing pretty easily - who knew there was such a difference?
In our books the real thing is incomparable - like this Texas ChiliI posted a while ago. It's made from chunks of meat with a red chile sauce and there's not a bean in sight. Now while I could have made this last night using only half a pound of meat in it would have been sacrilegious to see the meat go through on stilts never mind we'd have wanted some tortillas with it, and since they're loaded in carbs and calories that's a NO-NO. Hey we've only been "dieting" for the past 2 days (seems a lot longer). This version of cheater chili takes all of 25 minutes to pull together, which makes it a great candidate for a week night after work dinner. Download Coulda' Been Vegetarian Chili
The verdict from the taste tester - "not bad", but then again he'd been working out in the garage all day stripping and refinishing our big buffet that belongs in the dining room so I may have been able to pass that vegetarian stuff by him after all. He also loaded his portion up with pickled jalapeno's as you can see. If I make this particular recipe again, I will make it vegetarian but for sure I'll add more vegetables - like maybe some zucchini or yellow summer squash, and roasted eggplant and more peppers. Served on a grilled portabello mushroom, it would truly taste divine and up the satisfaction quotient. That's my opinion anyway.
Before I head off to my list of honey do's on this the last day of the year, I just gotta' say it's incredible how quickly 2009 went flying by - true the years go faster when you get older. It's been a darn good year filled with laughter, love, new friends thanks to this blogging adventure ... and clams, lots of clams (the edible variety). LOL Happy New Year everyone! We wish you all continued happiness, good health and great eats.
I'm actually planning on starting the South Beach diet next Monday. It's worked well for me in the past and if I could ever just learn to stay on it, I wouldn't get myself into the weight messes I keep getting into!
Happy New Year Juney!
Posted by: Mags | 12/31/2009 at 08:41 AM
I hear ya' about "staying on it". Our issue is moderation ...there's no such word in our dictionary. Oh well!
Posted by: June | 12/31/2009 at 09:42 AM
I have been 'taking it easy' since the day after Christmas. I love all the pickled jalapenos on this. Yes, I like the portabello idea. Glad we are all on the same page, calorie wise!
Posted by: Sarah G | 12/31/2009 at 04:36 PM
When I moved to the U.S. I have to say I left my "pansy" tastebuds back in Calgary - had to, because the big guy's got fiery tastes. That's the reason for the pickled jalapenos. Little did I know, I'd be living in the southwest growing my own and cultivating my own fiery tastes. Ha.
Posted by: June | 12/31/2009 at 04:53 PM