Crockpot Venison Chili

My kids looooove chili.  So, since it was getting a bit chillier outside, I thought today would be a perfect day to make it.  After realizing that I was out of ground beef, I remembered that one my husband's customers had given us some ground venison.  Now, let me tell you, my kids devour venison.  It's one of their favorites.  But I refuse to tell them what it is.  Why, might you ask?  I once told them I was going to make deer for dinner, and they both burst out crying.  So now, to sneak in the flavor and reduce a little fat in our diets, I substitute venison every once and a while!

Crockpot Venison Chili

1 lb. ground venison
1 medium onion, chopped
2 large stalks celery, chopped
1 large green pepper, chopped
1 15 oz. can tomato sauce 
1 8 oz. can No Salt Added tomato sauce
2 15 oz. cans dark red kidney beans, one drained, one with juices
1 15 oz. can cannellini beans with liquid (I used Simple Truth Organic- it had less sodium than the other brands)
1 1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp dried parsley
3/4 tsp salt
3/4 tsp dried basil
3/4 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
Dash of Salsa Picante (I use Juanita's Hot.  You could probably use any hot sauce)

Brown the venison over medium-low heat.  Venison dries out quickly, so I cook it over lower heat.  It might take longer, but you don't run the risk of it becoming too dry.

Put all your ingredients in your slow cooker and mix 'em up.  Cook over low for 8 hours.

Garnish as desired!  We like to put ours in a bowl with Fritos, shredded cheese, sour cream and diced onions.  

Enjoy!







Nutrition Information provided by myfitnesspal.com

Pickled Beets

Wow!  It sure has been a long time since I posted!  Anyway... I attempted a juice cleanse about a week ago.  All I have to say is- Never. Again.  So, I had a bunch of beets left over.  I hate beets.  Luckily for me, I didn't have to throw them away!  My husband loves them.  So, being the cheapskate that I am, I decided to attempt to do something with them.  I made pickled beets, and let me tell you, my husband is raving about them (he says they're just like his mother's!).  Here's my recipe (adapted from several on the internet):

Ingredients:
2 bunches of beets (3 large beets per bunch)
5/8 cup white vinegar + more to cover beets in jar
2.5 Tbsp Pure Cane Sugar (I use Zulka Morena sugar)
2.5 Tbsp Olive Oil
1.5 tsp Coleman's dry Mustard (If you can't find it, use a spicy dry mustard if possible, otherwise plain dry mustard will do)
Salt and Pepper to taste

First, slice beets into uniform sized slices.  This is pretty hard while they are raw, but get a good cutting board and a very sharp knife.  Boil for about 30-40 minutes, or until you can easily stick a fork in them.  Once they're done boiling, run the entire pan under cold water.  Rub the outsides of the beets to remove the skin.  Place sliced beets into a mason jar.  (I had to use two because my beets were so big.)

In a mixing bowl, mix together the ingredients and pour into the mason jars.  (I had to divide mine between the two jars).  Close the jar and give it a good shake to coat the beets.  Now that they're all coated, pour vinegar over beets until the top beet is submerged.  Close up the jar again and give it another good shake.  I refrigerated the beets immediately and let them set a few days, but you can leave them out and eat them in a few hours.  Enjoy!