Better Than Wendy’s Chili

Enough already!! We woke up this morning to, you guessed it, it was snowing! I almost cried. The hubster was so disgusted he decided that a nap was in order and right after breakfast, said nap ensued.

I went to work right away … yeah, right! That could have happened, but seriously — why? I sure as heck ain’t going anywhere! Blasted snow.

I decide that my poor little birdies needed some fuel. I bundled up and trudged outside to top up the bird feeders. I wasn’t even back in the house before they were zooming back to the feeders. I love my outdoor birdies. All I have to do is provide sunflower seed and I get hours and hours of entertainment!

All this snow has kept the hubster home and that means that I really should make lunch. Normally, when it’s just me I heat up some leftovers from earlier in the week. But when the two of us are at home, I like to make something fresh.

I think Better Than Wendy’s Chili is in order! I have to admit that I used to be pretty MEH about chili. I made it the way I was taught by my Mom and she made it the way that she & my Dad like it. Her chili is rich, thick and it’s more of a stew than a soup made with tomato sauce & paste. It wasn’t until I was challenged to eat a bowl of Wendy’s Chili that I fell in love with chili. The Wendy’s chili was more of a soup — full of diced tomatoes, veggies & beans, beef and it was spicy too. I just had to figure out how to make chili like that.

So, I started with diced tomatoes, ground beef, kidney beans, spices and onions, but something was missing. Knowing that the secret ingredient that I ignored for years in my spaghetti sauce was green peppers, I added some of those and Better Than Wendy’s Chili was created!

Serve with sour cream and shredded cheese and even over rice and you have a hearty meal that totally satisfies!