Almost Famous Chili

This Almost Famous Chili is one of the world best chili recipe ever.  It’s thick, hearty and loaded with goodness.  

If you are looking the world best chili recipe ever, look no further, my friend!  You have found it.  This chili has everything you’d expect – thick, hearty texture, sweet, smoky and spicy flavor and lots (and I mean LOTS) of good-for-you, stick-to-your-ribs goodness.

This post was sponsored by PPL Electric Utilities as part of their Project Envolve Ambassador program. All opinions expressed in my post are my own.

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{If you love soups, be sure to check out all my quick easy soup recipes.}

Let me tell you a little bit about how I came up with this recipe.  My son races BMX.  For those of you that don’t know, that’s bicycle moto-cross.  He races his pedal bike around a dirt track with hills, small jumps and turns.

He’s been racing for a little over a year and has gotten pretty good at it.  He’s moved up in proficiency from novice to intermediate level and has even earned the #4 spot in the state for his class!  (Can you tell I’m a proud mama?)

But, more importantly, he has found a sport that he loves!  And, it’s something that he and my husband can do together –  my husband used to race when he was younger and his started back up again.  It’s a great way for them to hang out together and stay active.

I’ll be you’re wondering what BMX has to do with chili, right?  A few weeks ago, our local BMX track hosted their annual Halloween race.  It’s a fun time with games, racing and, of course, food.

One of the dads at the track brought a bit pot of chili.  At one point in the evening there was quite a bit of chatter about how this was one of the best chili recipes ever.  I had to agree.  It was AMAZING!

I’m no stranger to good chili.  I love the stuff and have tasted lots of different chilis.  My Turkey Chili and Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili are two of my faves.  But, this one was exceptional.  There were two types of beans, butternut squash and corn cooked into a sweet and spicy sauce that just made you want more.   It was definitely the talk of the evening around the track.

The next day, I started working on coming up with a recipe for this chili based on what I had tasted.   It took several attempts but ultimately I came up with a recipe that was pretty close to the world best chili recipe ever.

Alternate Ways to Prepare Chili

With the colder months upon us we have entered into chili season.  It’s the perfect meal on cold, crisp days because it warms you from the inside out.  As we start to crank up the heat in the house, it helps to have a few energy efficiency tricks up our sleeves to help keep our energy costs down.

As a Project Envolve Ambassador, I’m always looking for new ways to save on energy.  My Home Energy Saving Checklist and Winter Energy Saving Plan Printable are perfect for this time of the year.

An easy way to save energy as we head into winter is to use alternate cooking sources.  Just as there are many types of chili recipes, there are also several energy efficient ways to prepare chili and other favorite cold-weather recipes.

1.  Use a slow cooker.  My White Chicken Chili is the perfect slow cooker chili recipe.  You just set it and forget it.  You don’t have to fire up the stove or oven.  Instead, this recipe uses the more energy efficient slow cooker.
2. Use an Instant Pot or pressure cooker.  Similar to a slow cooker, pressure cookers use much less energy that stoves or ovens to prepare meals.
3. Take it outside and use a grill.  I love making chili on my portable grill when we go tailgating or camping.  I prep all of the ingredients ahead of time and just throw it together in the parking lot.

Another easy energy saving tip is to make a double batch of your favorite recipe.  This way, you can get multiple meals by cooking once.

You can learn more about some of my favorite energy saving tips in my Ultimate Guide to Home Energy Savings.  You can also visit the Project Envolve website for more kitchen efficiency tips and energy saving tips and get even more energy efficient ideas from PPL on Pinterest.

More Recipes You Might Like

• One Pot Jambalaya
• Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili
• Instant Pot Sticky Chicken

Looking for more?  Check out all of the quick easy recipes for dinner on It Is a Keeper.

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4.54 from 13 votes

Almost Famous Chili

This Almost Famous Chili is one of the world best chili recipe ever.  It's thick, hearty and loaded with goodness.  

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time30 mins

Course: Main Dish

Servings: 8 servings

Author: Christina Hitchcock

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pounds ground beef
• 1 sweet onion - diced
• 1 bell pepper - diced
• 4 cloves garlic - minced
• 2 teaspoons House Seasoning blend
• 3 tablespoons Chili Seasoning Mix
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons chili in adobo
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1 29 oz can crushed tomatoes
• 2 cups butternut squash - diced
• 1 15.5 oz can kidney beans
• 1 15.5 oz can black beans
• 1 15.25 oz can corn

Instructions

• In a large pot, add ground beef, onion, bell pepper, garlic and House Seasoning blend and cook over medium high heat until meat is no longer pink.
• Drain excess fat from meat.
• Stir chili seasoning mix, brown sugar, chili in adobo and flour into meat mixture; Cook for 2 minutes.
• Add crushed tomatoes, squash, kidney beans, black beans and corn; Stir until combined.
• Reduce heat to medium, cover and cook for 30 minutes or until squash is fork-tender.
• Serve with your favorite chili toppings.

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Helpful Tips for All Recipes on It Is a Keeper

• Want to scale a recipe up or down? Simply type in a new serving amount and the recipe will automatically adjust! 
• When a recipe call for House Seasoning Blend, you can use this recipe or substitute salt and pepper to taste.  
• I always use unsalted butter in my recipes.
• I always use a meat thermometor to test for doneness when cooking meat.  This one is my favorite.  
• When a recipe is made in the oven, it should be pre-heated to the temperature in the recipe, unless otherwise noted.
• The nutritional information provided in this recipe is an estimate.  Learn more on how I calculate nutritional information for my recipes.