Mise en place

OK, so it's February, and I know everyone is getting just a little bit antsy to do outside stuff .
I still have yet to attain my bike riding goal for the month, and I'm pretty sure it won't happen. My ultimate goal is to ride twice as much this year as I did last, and I just don't think it's going to happen this month. While I have already matched February 06's days, I doubt I'll able to double it.

Oh well.

I do actually have a 29er bicycle relevant post upcoming on the newly installed Maverick on the RIP, but I'm still waiting for some of the small details to shake out. It's been such a long journey...

And without anything truly interesting happening in 29erland beyond rumor and hearsay, I have decided that an off topic post might be the ticket.

Atomic Chili.

Yeah, you heard me.
Atomic.

While I'm quite comfortable with the secrecy of my recipe, the foundation is there for you to experiment on your own. And here it is.


1 iPod filled with your favorite music
12 pack of good beer
1 medium sized red onion, finely diced
5 large cloves of garlic, finely diced
3 jalapeños, 2 with seeds, 1 without, finely diced
1lb sirloin tips, cut into 1" cubes
1lb ground turkey
1x 28oz can of crushed tomatoes
3x 16oz cans of beans (this time I used black, red and black eyed peas, but it doesn't really matter)
24oz vegetable stock

--ratios witheld--
Cumin
Basil
Paprika
Crushed red pepper
Super Secret Ingredient X

Salt n' Peppa
Cheddar cheese, the sharpest you can find, cut into itty bitty cubes.

~Crank your tunes, get motivated.
~Open a beer and consume while doing the following (repeat as necessary):

~In a big pot, over medium heat, pour a bunch of extra virgin olive oil, so that the bottom of the pot is well covered.
~When oil is hot, cook the onions until soft, about 8 minutes or so.
~Reduce heat to low, add garlic, cook for another 5 minutes.
~Add sirloin tips, raise heat to med high, and cook until the surface of the meat is browned, stirring every once in a while.
~Add ground turkey, sirring a bit more than every once in a while, until the turkey is cooked, about 7 minutes.
~Add the spices and jalapeños until thoroughly combined.
~Add tomatoes.
~Add the beans. I usually take 2 cans of the beans, drain and rinse them, and take the 3rd can and put the whole thing in. I save the cans...
~Stir it up.
~Add the veggie stock.
~Add 2 cans of water + bean residue (why I keep the cans)
~Turn to high, and bring to a boil for 10 minutes.
~Reduce heat to low and simmer for 3 hours.

Yeah, 3 hours. It is so worth it, trust me.
Stir every time you or your spouse/significant other gets up to get a beer.
Finished consistency should be thick, similar to pahoehoe. The liquid needs to reduce slowly, by about 1/3rd.
Add salt and pepper to taste.

When it is ready to eat, sprinkle the tiny cubes of cheese onto it, and enjoy!