Chili Macaroni & Cheese

We have been really busy, my family moved to another apartment here in Queens.  Moving is a huge undertaking here in NYC and add a baby and it becomes almost impossible without a lot of help.  I apologize for not posting sooner, but cooking is difficult when your kitchen is being packed or still being unpacked.  I made this recipe before we moved thankfully, but the pictures were on my external hardrive and so I had to get our computer set up and working before I could find them.  Did I mention my baby is super cute and likes to take 5 minute power naps?  Yes she isn't very helpful in my attempts to get anything done.  Without further ado, here is my recipe.

My dad makes something similar to hamburger helper without the box from the helper. He used a special blend of spices and herbs to flavor it (aka Lawry's Spaghetti Mix). My husband even liked it, I don't use dried flavor mixes very often, so I wanted to try to make my own version. This is a spicier version of my dad's hamburger helper, it even passes the husband and children test. This particular recipe does depend on a certain chorizo that is awesome. Yes my secret ingredient to this extremely simple recipe is chorizo. Sort of a chorizo flavored sausage, not really the typical dried chorizo.  You could make this recipe with ground beef and bypass the chorizo altogether, I wouldn't be offended I promise.

Cheese and just the right amount of spice and pasta, such a wonderful comfort food.

Ingredients:

3/4 lb. Elbow Macaroni
2 cups Crushed Tomatoes
1 lb. Chorizo Sausage (ground beef nay be substituted)
1/2 lb. Monterey Jack Cheese
Kosher Salt

The chorizo I use is a flavored sausage.  It isn't a dried chorizo.  This chorizo is the best!
Remove chorizo from the casing and brown in a large skillet. 

Beautiful browned chorizo, if you could smell this you would, well anyway, it is really yummy.

Pour the crushed tomatoes onto the chorizo and cook on medium heat until it boils.
 Reduce heat to low and simmer the sauce.

Bring a large stockpot full of water to boil over high heat and sprinkle with salt.  Start this
process just before cooking the chorizo.  Boil macaroni according to package instructions.
 I cooked the full pound of macaroni.  My sons are very picky eaters, who will only eat
buttered macaroni, so I separated the pasta accordingly after it was cooked.

Drain the macaroni.

Add macaroni and grated cheese to sauce.  Stir and cook over medium heat until cheese melts.

Serve in a big bowl, and 

Enjoy!

Chili Macaroni & Cheese

Ingredients:

3/4 lb. Elbow Macaroni
2 cups Crushed Tomatoes
1 lb. Chorizo Sausage (ground beef nay be substituted)
1/2 lb. Monterey Jack Cheese
Kosher Salt

Process:

Remove chorizo from the casing and brown in a large skillet. 

Pour the crushed tomatoes onto the chorizo and cook on medium heat until it boils.  Reduce heat to low and simmer the sauce.

Bring a large stockpot full of water to boil over high heat and sprinkle with salt.  Start this process just before cooking the chorizo.

Boil macaroni according to package instructions.

Drain the macaroni.

Add macaroni and grated cheese to sauce.  Stir and cook over medium heat until cheese melts.

Serve in a big bowl.

Enjoy!

Feijoada (Brazillian Black Bean Stew, or Chili)

Recently a friend from church had a baby.  I wanted to make a dinner for her and her husband that would be comforting and remind her of her home country of Brazil.  When I was looking up recipes from Brazil, I learned about a Brazilian Black Bean Stew, Feijoada.  Since I had all the ingredients to make the stew, it was a win win.  We had leftovers, so on another night the stew got an upgrade and the recipe below is the upgrade.  This stew was very delicious, so much so, that my husband requested I make it again for a church social.  I made it this afternoon, third times the charm for our church Halloween Party Chili Cook-off.  I added some pepper flakes to the recipe to make it more like chili.  I brought this "chili" and blew away the judges and won first prize.  I think they liked the three kinds of pork, not a traditional chili with beef.  This recipe can be made very easily, and cheaply, depending on your preferences.  At a nearby grocery store, we have blemished discount produce that isn't perfect enough to be sold with the other pretty produce.  On a wonderful whim, I looked at the discounted produce at my local grocery store and struck cheap produce heaven and found bell peppers to use for this recipe.

Look at all that pork, so very yummy.

Ingredients:

1 lb. Black Beans
Kosher Salt
Garlic Powder
3 Green Bell Peppers
2 Red Bell Peppers
2 Yellow Onions
1 lb. Chorizo
4 lb. Pork Shoulder
Left Over Ham Bone (with left over ham and fat)
3 Pints Canned Whole Tomatoes
5 slices Bacon
2 teaspoons Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
Water

Soak black beans over night in water, 3 inches above beans and 2 tablespoons kosher salt.

Cut up the bacon into 1 inch pieces, add bacon, ham bone (remove meat and fat), soaked beans
to a pressure cooker pot or a stock pot on a stove.  If you do not have a ham bone, add more bacon.   Pour enough water to cover beans by 3 inches.  Cook beans in pressure cooker on high for
30 minutes or on the stove simmer covered for 1 hour or until beans are tender. 

Rub kosher salt and garlic powder all over the pork shoulder.  Place on spit of rotisserie or put

 on a rack set into a roasting pan. Roast for 20 minutes, and then reduce the heat to 325 degrees F. Continue to cook for 3 hours. 

My ham bone is leftover so it still has meat and fat on it.  I freeze leftover bones and use them
for other recipes.  Remove meat and fat from ham bone and cut into 1/2 inch pieces. If you do
not have a ham bone with leftover meat on it substitute a ham steak.

Place ham and fat in a stock pot over low heat. We are rendering the fat (melting the fat),
although fat is yummy, it is better melted than having to chew it.  Remove meat when slightly
fried, remove cooked fat when fried.  Leave the melted fat in the stock pot.

Dice the onions, and bell peppers.  Saute the onions and bell peppers in the melted pork fat left
in the large stock pot over medium low heat.

Remove chorizo from the skin.  Break apart with a wooden spoon and cook over medium
 heat in a large 12 inch skillet.

Cut roasted pork into 1/2 inch cubes.  Place ham, fried fat, and pork in the same pan as the chorizo. 

Add the pork to the stock pot with the sauteed vegetables, add drained beans, add whole tomatoes
and cut with a spoon.  Stir and add red pepper flakes.  Cook over medium heat until bubbling.

This is a Brazillian Black Bean Stew, if you omit the pepper flakes, and with the pepper flakes
 it is great as a chili.

Enjoy!

Feijoada (Brazillian Black Bean Stew, or Chili)

Printable Recipe Found Here

Ingredients:

1 lb. Black Beans

Kosher Salt

Garlic Powder

3 Green Bell Peppers

2 Red Bell Peppers

2 Yellow Onions

1 lb. Chorizo

4 lb. Pork Shoulder

Left Over Ham Bone (with left over ham and fat)

3 Pints Canned Whole Tomatoes

5 slices Bacon

2 teaspoons Crushed Red Pepper Flakes

Water

Process:

Soak black beans over night in water, 3 inches above beans and 2 tablespoons kosher salt.

Cut up the bacon into 1 inch pieces, add bacon, ham bone (remove meat and fat), soaked beans to a pressure cooker pot or a stock pot on a stove.  If you do not have a ham bone, add more bacon.  Pour enough water to cover beans by 3 inches.  Cook beans in pressure cooker on high for 30 minutes or on the stove simmer covered for 1 hour or until beans are tender.

Rub kosher salt and garlic powder all over the pork shoulder.  Place on spit of rotisserie or put

on a rack set into a roasting pan. Roast for 20 minutes, and then reduce the heat to 325 degrees F. Continue to cook for 3 hours. 

Remove meat and fat from ham bone and cut into 1/2 inch pieces. If you do not have a ham bone with leftover meat on it, substitute a ham steak.

Place ham and fat in a stock pot over low heat. We are rendering the fat (melting the fat), although fat is yummy, it is better melted than having to chew it.  Remove meat when slightly fried, remove cooked fat when fried.  Leave the melted fat in the stock pot.

Dice the onions, and bell peppers.  Saute the onions and bell peppers in the melted pork fat left in the large stock pot over medium low heat.

Remove chorizo from the skin, break apart with a wooden spoon and cook over medium heat in a large 12 inch skillet.

Cut roasted pork into 1/2 inch cubes. Place ham, fried fat, and pork in the same pan as the chorizo. 

Add the pork to the stock pot with the sauteed vegetables, add drained beans, add whole tomatoes and cut with a spoon.  Stir and add red pepper flakes.  Cook over medium heat until bubbling.

Enjoy!