the holman-heberts | sweetlovefarm

Solomon put a rubberband around his head Pocahontas style. But very soon his hair won’t be so long that he looks like a girl - he’s getting his first haircut this Saturday! Stay tuned for the before and after pics. They should be fun to see!

HUGE NEWS! I just unsubscribed from our gDiapers emails because you know what? We don’t need diapers anymore!!!!! Never again! Until Phil and I need them as old old people and in that case, I don’t think gDiapers makes them large enough for adults!!!!

Help us celebrate this huge milestone to finally have our kids out of diapers completely!

I have a new quest: how to make items like mac-n-cheese or cheesy eggs or gooey grilled cheese without Velveeta. Velveeta is one of a handful of things that Phil and I cannot find a natural replacement for. We try our hardest to avoid processed food as much as possible, but this is one thing that stumps us. I have recently come across a recipe for “homemade American cheese” from America’s Test Kitchen, so that will be my next task to try. 

In the meantime, I made this macaroni and cheese tonight that is THE closest I have come to the flavor and creaminess of Velveeta in mac-n-cheese. Here is the original recipe. Next time I make it, I will reduce the dry mustard by half and not include the red pepper (my kids are not keen on heat). I will also use a Gruyere and/or a rich Wisconsin cheddar (rather than a off brand plain block cheese). Even with all these adjustments, it’s a keeper!

We had our annual Chili Cookoff at my work today (to raise money for charity). As I made my chili last night, I figured I might as well do a cinemagraph while I waited for it to simmer. Fun!

So I didn’t win the cookoff. I didn’t even make the top three, but that’s ok because it turned out that the prizes included a gift card to McDonald’s or a gift card to Chili’s - while very nice for some, I can live without both for a looooong time!

At any rate, I tried a fun new recipe this year - the secret ingredient? Chocolate! I based my recipe on this one from Our Best Bites (I doubled it). After all was said and done, I found that it needed less brown sugar and less vinegar. (And I used beef instead of turkey). I will definitely try this again! It was rich and tasty. Not too spicy, with a sweetness you don’t usually find in chili. Great!

Here’s my adapted recipe:

Chipotle Chocolate Chili

2 lb. ground beef
2 med. onions, chopped fine
2 red bell peppers, chopped small
4-6 cloves garlic, minced
4 15 oz. cans petite diced tomatoes
2 15 oz. cans black beans (or you can make them yourself out of dry black beans)
4 cups beef broth (sounds strange, but I used chicken broth because it’s all I had - it worked fine!)
1-2 T. brown sugar (original recipe calls for 6 T. - this was too sweet, even for me)
4 T. chili powder
2 t. ground cumin
2 T. unsweetened cocoa powder (I used 1 T. Dutch Process and 1 T. black cocoa, but you can use regular)
1 t. kosher salt
1 t. cracked black pepper
Chipotle sauce (from two small can of chipotle chilis)
3/4 oz. unsweetened chocolate (3/4 of a one cube) chopped fine - be careful, use to taste, too much will make your chili too bitter
2-3 T. red wine vinegar (be careful here too, start with 1 T. at a time, then add, too much will make it too vinegar-y)
Shredded cheddar, sour cream, and onions to serve

Brown ground beef and set aside. Heat some olive oil in a large dutch oven (or stock pot) over medium heat. Saute onion, bell pepper and garlic until translucent. Mix in browned ground beef, tomatoes, beans, broth, brown sugar, chili powder, cumin, cocoa powder, salt and pepper. Add the chipotle sauce from two small cans (set the peppers aside). Heat to boiling, then reduce to a simmer (uncovered), stirring occasionally, until thickened as desired (about 45 minutes worked for me). If desired, add some of the chopped chipotle peppers for heat. Add 1-2 T. red wine vinegar and a small amount of chopped chocolate. Taste and repeat as needed for desired richness. When thickened and seasoned as desired, serve with cheese, sour cream, and onions.

Enjoy!

Even though this photo is pretty messy, I still wanted to share it because it’s so cool that Phil made homemade chili sauce (enchilada sauce). It was spicy, but very tasty.

I even debated entering this in the annual Chili Cookoff at my work!

I topped mine with cilantro and avocado. Wow, this was sooo yummy!

Oh those eyes.

Oh those eyes! (Solomon wearing Burke’s glasses)

Oh those eyes? (Burke’s always coming up with crazy creative things like this!)

Dying to know what was inside? A 2-cup pyrex measuring cup. Simple things make me happy. I don’t need fancy gifts!

One hour ice cream. I’m not sure what that is, but I love it!

My favorite part of Finley’s coupon - the two of us holding ice cream cones.