Chili for chilly nights

 

We made a giant pot of chili with ground beef and a bag of heirloom Jacobs Cattle Beans, mail ordered from Rancho Gordo. Why go to all the trouble, when you can just open cans of kidney beans?

Well, these beautiful beans are pretty special. While they look like any other bean after they cook, they hold their shape and have a meaty texture that makes them especially good for chili. 

(Legend has it that Jacobs Cattle beans were a gift from the Passamaquoddy Native Americans to the first non-native child born in Lubec, Maine. Aw. Nice story.)

 

John won't touch sour cream, but I like a fattening dab to mellow out spicy food. 

Speaking of chilly, while the eastern half of the country freezes, we've been warm so far this winter. That's typical of our contrarian weather in the Pacific Northwest. They're starting to fret about the lack of mountain snow pack, but plenty of time to make that up. It will probably dump on the passes around Christmas, when people want to travel. 

Speaking of, we're off to get a tree today at Mclendon's Hardware in White Center. Maybe that will put me in a Christmas mood. Or not.