chili

To make a really long story short, we misread our ticket and arrived only 40 minutes before our plane departed for Denver. Naturally, our bags didn't make it and we had to wait for the next plane from Orlando to deliver our clothes for the week and. . .more diapers. Paul did some research and found a vegetarian restaurant in downtown Denver where we could spend our time. Although the GPS took us an odd way through a not-so-nice area of town, we eventually got to Uptown and had no trouble parking near this amazing restaurant.

WaterCourse Foods is designed much like Dandelion CommuniTea Cafe with its re-purposed surroundings and more hippie wait staff who worked very hard to clean up tables quickly. We liked our waiter, Eric, who was very nice and knowledgeable--except for the fact that he told Paul the chili sauce was not hot.

Cost Per Person $13.25

About a week ago, Paul cooked us up a big batch of pinto beans. We froze some, had haystacks/taco salads one night, and quesadillas another night. Then we must have had burritos for lunch all week. Don't get me wrong. We like burritos. And the beans were realy good; so, we didn't mind the lack of variety. However, the whole concept inspired me to be a little more creative with an overabundance of beans. In our brainstorming, I came up with the idea to serve chili baked potatoes when my folks came over during the week. The idea went over well, and it spawned the creation of the recipe below. I tried to keep it simple, and would say although it's very good the way it is, there's still a number of ways to change it up. If you are the simpler, don't-confuse-me, indecisive type, stop reading here. (Can you tell I've been reading parenting books?)

1. Add Morningstar Farms Grillers Starters for a chunky, meatier flavor.

2. Don't drain the pinto beans if you're a fan of a juicier chili--or stew!

3. Use Muir Glen Adobo Seasoned canned tomatoes for a hotter base.

4. Mix your beans or choose black over pinto.

5. Make a chili pie with leftovers by scooping chili over Fritos, topping with cheese, and baking.

Recipe for Chili Baked Potatoes

Serves about 6

• 1 can Muir Glen Fire Raosted Tomatoes, chopped slightly in a food processor if your guests don't like chunky tomatoes
• 1 fresh jalapeno pepper, diced
• 3 medium garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 large onion, diced
• 3 cups cooked pinto beans
• 3/4 t ground cumin
• 1/2 t chili powder
• 1 T olive oil
• 6 medium baking potatoes
• Cheese as desired
• Cilantro for garnish

Saute onions in olive oil on medium heat until translucent. May undercook for a stronger flavor. Add garlic and pepper. Stir and cook until just before garlic browns. Add tomatoes, stir, and simmer (until my frozen beans had defrosted enough in the microwave to remove them from their bowl). Sprinkle in cumin and chili powder. Stir in beans, cover, and turn fire to low. Continue to stir occasionally and monitor for 20 minutes or longer (depending on when the potatoes are done).

Spoon chili over potatoes, allow cheese on top as desired. Garnish with cilantro. Salt and hot sauce should be available at the table.

Our best results for baking potatoes in the oven is wrapping them in aluminum foil to keep them from drying out and setting them on the rack in a 450' oven for about an hour. You can also microwave them (max of about 3 at a time), but Paul claims that's technically steaming, not baking.

When Paul's folks were getting to Orlando last night, it was near dinner time. I asked Paul if he wanted to meet them somewhere and eat faster. I wasn't surprised with his choice of Dandelion CommuniTea Cafe. We have done a lot of eating there recently, including last month when Paul took a group of fellow attendees at an internet conference there for dinner on a Saturday night. The restaurant is a great choice for individuals who are vegan or who are allergic to dairy or wheat. Since I have pretty much been perfectly happy with salad, grapes and an occasional pizza during this pregnancy, I was more than happy to visit the restaurant for a salad I didn't have to make or clean up myself.

In case we haven't shared a photograph of it before, the Giddyup can be a salad or a wrap in "haystack" style--chili, blue corn chips, mixed greens, tomatoes, scallions, and vegan or organic cheese. We always choose the side of hummus, and Paul adds a ranch-style salad dressing called "green goddess" for an extra $0.50. My salad included a nice variety of vegetables, and I always like the sunflower seed topping.

Cost Per Person $8.50

Outside of Paris, our daily activities aren't as exciting as Paris was. They were special, but obviously not as well-known and not always high-tourist areas. Much of the rest of the France stories will be focused more on food. Paul will be happier about this as he thinks the day-by-day stories about Paris were not so Eat Like a Rabbit related.

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