Cincinnati Chili

I have always hated chili. I despise chili powder. The chili I've had was always either too spicy, too tomato-y or had way too many beans (which, by the way, is any beans at all).

That being said, I could not stop shoving this chili in my face. So freaking delicious. And no beans! It's not very traditional, it's not spicy, and it has allspice and cinnamon in it. And it's served over spaghetti in true Cincinnati style. With a mountain of cheese on top. And really folks, does it get better than that? No, no it does not.

I got this recipe out of my Cook's Country 'Best Lost Suppers' cookbook, which is also where I got the recipe for the Boston Brown Bread.

Normally chili takes 1-2 to 5 hours to make, right? Not this pot of awesome. 30-40 minutes, with prep. I made the chili in my cast iron dutch oven, and it was perfect! I'm seriously thinking of replacing most of my pots and pans with cast iron; it never ever fails to make food turn out amazing. Disclaimer: cast iron pots and pans will not give you delicious cooking superpowers of awesome. But they might help ;)

When you serve up this chili, pour it over a nice helping of spaghetti noodles, top it with chopped onion, beans if you really feel the need, which you shouldn't, because beans in chili is a sin, a monstrous portion of shredded cheddar cheese, and lastly, oyster crackers (which I forgot to include in the picture. My bad.) Try not to make yourself sick by eating too much.

Cincinnati Chili

1 Tbs. vegetable oil
2 onions, minced
2 Tbs. tomato paste
2 Tbs. chili powder
1 Tbs. dried oregano
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 garlic clove, minced
Salt and pepper
1/4 tsp ground allspice
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 cups tomato sauce (I recommend Muir Glen organic for this, just simply because it's AMAZE)
2 Tbs. cider vinegar
2 tsp dark brown sugar
1 1/2 pound 85% lean ground beef
Optional: cooked spaghetti noodles, chopped onion, white beans, cheddar cheese and oyster crackers

Heat the oil in a Dutch oven (works great with cast iron) over medium heat until shimmering. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and browned around the edges, about 8 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste, chili powder, oregano, cinnamon, garlic, 1 tsp salt, 3/4 tsp pepper, and allspice and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the chicken broth, tomato sauce, vinegar and sugar.
Crumble in the beef, breaking up any large clumps with a wooden spoon. Bring to a simmer and cook until the chili is deep brown and thickened slightly, 15 to 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
Serve over spaghetti noodles with plenty of chopped onion, beans, oyster crackers and a mountain of cheese.