1st Annual Jen's Dish Event!

The first ever Jen's Dish event was held the Saturday before the Super Bowl :(, at Washington Hill Liquors in Lincoln, RI. The afternoon was made all the more festive by the addition of Mike Murray and his Saugy Hot Dog cart! Who can resist free Saugy Frankfurts? A big THANK YOU to Kent & Gregg for putting together a terrific list of Super Bowl pairings accompanied by special Super Bowl prices! Another big THANK YOU to Mary O'Brien of Saugy,Inc. for supplying the frankfurts and Mike Murray for bringing his cart along and making up some yummy dogs! Inside my Mom and I (thanks Mom!)gave out samples of False Alarm Chili. 5 Alarm was more like it! A hearty, vegetarian chili packed with heat!

When making the chili the night before, I was reading over the recipe and measuring out my herbs and spices. The recipe called for 1/3 cup of chili powder. Seeing as i was doubling the recipe, I scooped away! Well, you'd think i would take a dose of my advice and taste first before adding too much heat. But Noooo, I just plopped the second 1/3 cup in! Oh my goodness, have you ever stuck your nose in chili powder? No, probably not. Well, I couldn't breathe! I had to put on the ceiling fan to get the air circulating. I realized quickly that this was going to be way too much heat, so luckily I was able to scoop out some of the chili powder that was sitting at the top of the liquid, having not yet dissolved. Still, even after I did that it was almost inedible - except for the most daring of palates! Mmmm, 9pm what to do???? Call MOM!
My Mom suggested I split the chili in half, and add more tomatoes (28oz. can diced in juice) to each pot and let it sit overnight. The next morning, well, it still had heat but much more bearable! By the time we set up the table at Washington Hill, the chili had mellowed out nicely and was: PERFECT! Certainly woke up the hung over University students that came in to try it.
Here is the recipe I adapted from Martha Stewart
You will not miss the meat in this one!!
Five Alarm Chili (otherwise known as False Alarm chili!)
Ingredients
Serves 10.
· 2 tablespoons olive oil
· 1 medium onion, chopped
· 1 green bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
· 1 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
· 1 large carrot, chopped medium
· 2 cloves garlic, minced
· 1 pound dried lentils, rinsed
· 1/3 cup tomato paste
· 1 (15-ounce) red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
· 1 (15-ounce) pinto beans, drained and rinsed
· 1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes
· 2 Tablespoons (or more to taste) chili powder
· 4 teaspoons ground cumin
· 1/4 teaspoon crushed red-pepper flakes
· 1/4 teaspoon salt
· 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Directions
1. In a large soup pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion, green and red peppers, carrot, and garlic. Cook until the vegetables soften, about 5 minutes. Stir in 7 cups water, lentils, tomato paste, kidney beans, and pinto beans. Stir to blend, adding diced tomatoes, chili powder, cumin, and crushed red-pepper flakes.
2. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer until lentils are tender, about 45 minutes. If the chili starts to dry out, add hot water as needed. Season with salt and pepper, and serve immediately.
Adapted from a MSL recipe.
Will certainly let you know when and where the next Jen's Dish event will be!