Beans, Beans, They're Good For Your Heart...

Just a few short months ago, I discovered the magical word of beans! I had never eaten a bean until I went to Moe's and it was on my burrito, and now I am hooked! My roommate and I make a bean dip out of refried pinto beans, which is fabulous! Since I have discovered my joy of beans, I have wanted to try and make chili. Well, I finally did!

I have been planning this meal for about a week and a half now, lol. It has made me so nervous... I thought it was going to be hard, but it really wasn't! I called my mother for her recipe, as my entire family adores her chili. She walked me through the steps, multiple times, lol. To start my chili, I turned on my two-quart slow cooker on low. I then threw in a can of tomato soup, small can of tomato sauce, and a can of water into the cooker. I then placed a skillet on the stove on medium heat. I chopped a small onion and added ground turkey. I then seasoned with pepper, garlic salt, chili seasoning, and cayenne pepper. At the same time, I added chili seasoning to the tomato mix. Once the meat and onions were cooked, I added them to my sauce. To finish my chili off, I seasoned to taste and added my mother's secret ingredient! (Which I am not about to reveal :p) I did stray away a little from her recipe, she adds bits of tomatoes(I hate the texture). Also, I made my chili last night and then put it in the fridge. This morning I turned my cooker on low and let it cook while I was at school/work! Here is my chili as it cooks:

One cannot simply just eat a bowl of chili, of course. It must have the right toppings! The best and most common topping: CRACKERS! Well, while I was at the store, I forgot crackers, lol. As I was making chili, I began thinking about how much I didn't want to go to Wal*Mart after school to get some... That is when I received an amazing idea! I should make my own crackers! It is so simple and easy to do! I found a recipe today and made them before serving the chili. I will actually share this recipe, lol.

• 2 Cups A/P Flour
• 1 tsp Baking Powder
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 1/3 c Olive Oil
• 2/3 c Warm Water

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2. Lightly grease two cookie sheets
3. Mix together dry ingredients, then add wet ingredients. Mix until a smooth dough forms.
4. Divide dough into two equal parts and spread each into their own cookie sheet. Spread into a thin layer by hand or rolling pin.
5. Use a knife or pizza cutter and cut dough into squares.
6. Using an egg wash, an egg white and 2 tbsp of water, brush the squares.
7. Move pans to the oven and cook for 10 mins or until crispy.
8. Remove from oven and lightly salt

Here is the final result:

They are absolutely fabulous and stay crispier than store-bought!

Once the crackers are done, then you assemble everything! Chili + Cheese + Crackers + Sour Cream = Yum!

It was amazing!

My sourdough starter, Sarah, is doing amazingly well! She has started to produce alcohol, like whoa! It smells like beer in my kitchen, lol.  In a couple of days, I will be making sourdough bread :D

That is it for this edition! Until next time, have a good night and tomorrow!