Recipes from the Twit Army Mess Hall - Chili con Carne

Ingredients

1 lb. ground beef
1 lb. stew meat cut into pieces about 1/2 the size of a eraser
1.5 c. chopped onions
2 tbl. chopped garlic
3/4 c. chili powder
(n.b. I use Penzey's medium heat but use what you want, if you use pure powdered chile, i.e. nothing but ground chile, you'll need to add 1.5 tbl of cumin)
1 tlb. sweet paprika
1 - 2 tbl. cayenne pepper
1 8 oz can tomato puree (you can use sauce for a thinner chili sauce)
16 oz. water
1 can corn with peppers
1/4 c masa harina (This is finely ground corn flour, not corn starch, you can't subsititute)

Optional add ins
Grated cheese
Chopped onions


Preparation

Brown meat pieces when about 1/2 way done add the ground meat & onions & finish browning all the meat. Drain off as much fat as possible.

Mix spices into water to dissolve, add garlic, spiced water & tomato puree to pot & stir to mix, let simmer for 2 - 3 hours to blend the flavors (since the meat is already cooked you could theoretically eat this within 30 minutes but the longer it simmers the better the flavors blend)
1 hr before eating add the corn. 30 minutes before eating add the masa & stir well (This will thicken up the chili)

I serve this in scooped out sour dough bread bowls covered with chopped onions & cheese but you can serve it any way you want.

Serves 4 (or only 2 if you REALLY, REALLY like chili)
This can be easily doubled or tripled & you can freeze the leftovers for up to about 3 months to heat & serve later.

Also, this can be made in a slow cooker on low. Cook the meat in a skillet & then add everything but the corn and masa to a slow cooker. Cook on low for about 6 hours then add the corn & masa, cook for another 30 minute then serve.

Recipes from the Twit Army Mess Hall - King Ranch Casserole

Ingredients
4 chicken thighs, skinless & bonless
1 onion, chopped
1/2 c. water
1/2 c. chicken broth
1 pkg. corn tortillas, cut into strips
2 c. grated 'mexican style' cheese
1 can tomatoes & green chiles
1 can cream of chicken soup
Black olives, slices

Poach chicken & onions in broth & water, when done remove chicken, cool & shred, leave the onions with the broth.
Measure broth & add additional water to bring total vol to 1/2 cup, add tomatoes & soup and heat to simmer.
Line bottom of deep dish pie with 1/2 of tortilla strips. Then over that add 1/2 of chicken, a layer of 1/2 of the cheese. Pour over 1/2 of the sauce, Repeat layers but this time add the sauce first & then the cheese so the cheese is on top. Dot with sliced olives.
Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Serves 4 - 6