Florida’s climate is wonderful this time of year but I was watching the weather and saw all of the snow the rest of the country was dealing with and felt nothing but empathy. I mean my heart really goes out to you guys. All the snow and cold weather, along with a bottle of Kahlua I got as a Christmas gift, inspired me to whip up yet another chili recipe. A big pot of chili is comfort food 101 so take a chill (no pun intended) and kill a couple of hours cooking up a batch. It’s not like you are going anywhere.

This chili features Kahlua® liqueur which is known for its rich sweetened coffee flavor but you can use and coffee based cordial. I like to cook with it but I am not too keen on drinking it. Go figure. I also use a mixture of ground beef and ground pork here which gives the chili a very nice texture. Add some chorizo for good measure and a three varied chili powders and you got a fairly complex layering of tastes. It’s just a little sweet, it’s just a little spicy and it’s a whole lot satisfying.

I have mentioned this before but in case you missed it; when I say chorizo I mean the fresh Mexican sausage with fresh being the operative word. Not the smoked and dried version. I usually remove the meat from the casing and use it kick up ground beef and or pork so the hard dried sausage would be too chewy and not good at all in these applications. Save that to top your Ritz crackers.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 lb lean ground beef
• 1 lb ground pork
• 1/2 lb chorizo, removed from casing (about (2) five inch lengths)
• 1 large yellow onion, chopped
• 2 poblano peppers, stemmed seeded and chopped
• 6 cloves garlic, chopped
• 3 large tomatoes, peeled and chopped
• 1 cup Kahlua
• 6 cups beef stock
• 1 (14 oz) cans pinto beans
• 2 tablespoons ground chipotle chili powder
• 1 tablespoon hot Mexican chili powder
• 1/2 cup chili powder
• 2 tablespoons ground cumin
• 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 2 dashes Liquid Smoke
• 2 tablespoons fresh chopped oregano
• 4 tablespoons or so of masa harina
• Couple splashes of hot sauce if needed
• Kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

PREPARATION:

Brown the beef, pork and chorizo in a large stock pot over medium heat. Mixing well and breaking down the meat. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside, reserving 3 or 4 tablespoons of the rendered fat in the pot. Add the onion and peppers to the pot and cook until tender. Then add the garlic and cook for about 2 more minutes. Return the meat to the pot and add the Kahlua, beef stock, beans (with the liquid from the cans), chili powders, cumin, Worcestershire, Liquid Smoke and oregano and stir. Bring to a boil then reduce to a low simmer and cooked for about 45 minutes. Now stir in the masa a little bit at a time until the chili thickens up to your desired thickness. Add the salt, pepper and hot sauce to taste.

Serves plenty

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