OK, so this past weekend in Houston it was in the 70’s and I wore capris. Apparently we could see snow flurries by the end of this week! So to celebrate the cold weather (because yes, I like cold weather in winter – call me crazy) I decided to make some warm Chili. I have this cookbook that I love called Celebrate! by Shelia Lukins, its awesome! It’s set up by occasion like Easter, Vday, Mother’s Day… so this recipe for Chili came from the “Superbowl” section. It’s called El Cid Chili and its Amazing! It doesn’t call for any beans or extras; just the meat, tomatoes and spices. Add some shredded cheese and green onion on top and you are ready for these “Houston Snow Flurries”.

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 pounds sirloin steak, cut into 1-inch cubes
1/2 pound ground beef
12 ounces chorizo sausage, casing removed, cut into 1/2 cubes ( I used sausage not chorizo)
1 large yellow onion, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup chili powder
1 tablespoon garlic salt
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon dried basil
2 (14.5-ounce) cans beef broth
2 (14.5-ounce) cans whole tomatoes, drained
1 cup cilantro, chopped
1 cinnamon stick
3 bay leaves
2 green jalapenos, slit lengthwise 3 times each
1 tablespoon yellow cornmeal
Salt and pepper, to taste
Garnish with Cheddar and sour cream, if desired

Directions:

What is for dinner tonight at your house? You don’t know either do you? Well here is an option… Spinach Artichoke Pasta Bake. I saw this recipe in Real Simple Magazine a few months ago and had to try it. By the way I loooove getting my real simple magazine in the mail, its like a little treasure and it usually comes on the same day as my Martha Magazine, double whammy. Anyway here it is; I changed the recipe a little so here is my TaylorMade version:

Ingredients:
8 oz penne pasta
14 oz can of artichokes (rinsed and chopped)
9 oz pkg of frozen creamed spinach (thawed)
1/4 c grated Parmesan
2 c grated mozzarella
black pepper
(optional) I added some chopped Italian ham

• Heat your broiler
• Cook pasta according to instructions on package, drain and return to pot
• Add artichokes, spinach, Parmesan, half of the mozzarella, and 1/4 tsp black pepper (and ham if using) to the pasta and toss
• Transfer to a baking dish and sprinkle remaining mozzarella on top
• Broil for about 5-8 minutes or until cheese is browned on top

I love that it only uses 2 pots/dishes for the whole recipe! Before Bryan and I lived in our current house, we didn’t have a dishwasher so we became really good at using as few dishes as possible! What is a recipe you make that only uses a few dishes? Do share!