I’ve been very disoriented lately. Not sure if it’s the result of traveling more than normal, working for literally 24 hours straight last week or the back and forth weather patterns, but I couldn’t even tell you my middle name if you asked. All I know is that I’m not me without some chili….or some sleep. It’s hard to say which I value more.
Three things happened that made me immediately crave chili. The temperature dropped below 70°, the sun went behind a cloud, and football started. I didn’t even realize Summer was almost over until I was on the phone with my mom and she told me my dad was at the Broncos game. Broncos = football. Football = Fall. Fall = chili. Am I right?
Here’s the thing. When I made this recipe, it was straight up chili weather: 60° outside, gloomy, and windy. But as soon as the weekend ended, it shot up to 102° and what felt like 200% humidity. WTF. We even had an afternoon storm yesterday in the midst of the heat. It did nothing to bring down the temperature, but it did leave my front seat nice and damp. I felt like I was in Hell or Florida. Same thing.
I swear I have a point with this rant. Because I had no desire to have a warm meal AT ALL this week (like literally ice for dinner wasn’t ruled out), this was the perfect opportunity to stock my freezer! I recently ate through the last of my chili stores, so the timing couldn’t have been better. When I freeze anything, I always divide it up into individual servings. I do this for three reasons. First, I eat depending on my mood. So I don’t really want to thaw 5 pounds of chili to satisfy one Saturday night craving. Secondly, portion control. I can and will eat 5 pounds of chili if it’s in the fridge. Third, individual servings make for easy grab & go meals with faster thawing times. Sometimes life gets in the way of my meal prep and I would much rather grab something from my freezer real quick than stop at the taco truck that parks down the street.
This recipe makes 6 servings, so if you’re as single as I am, it’s perfect for splitting and freezing half. It turned out to be less spicy than I typically like in my chili, but the subtle smokiness offset by the sweetness of the butternut squash was quite nice. I also dumped all the cilantro I had and an entire jalapeño in the bowl. But you do you. Ranch or avocado would also be delicious here. What do you guys normally top your chili with?!
| Prep Time | 30 minutes |
| Cook Time | 8 hours |
| Servings |
servings
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- 2 lbs grass-fed ground beef
- 3 cups butternut squash cubed
- 2 14 oz cans fire roasted tomatoes *use tomatoes with added green chilis for an added kick!
- 1 can tomato paste
- 2 bell peppers any color will do!
- 1 yellow onion
- 3 cloves garlic
- 2 Tbsp chili powder
- 2 Tbsp ancho chili powder
- 1 Tbsp cumin
- 2 tsp chipotle powder
Ingredients
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|
- Add beef to crock pot and break up into smaller pieces using a large wooden spoon
- Chop butternut squash, bell peppers, yellow onion, and garlic. Add to crock pot.
- Add tomatoes, tomato paste, and spices to the crock pot.
- Mix everything well and set to low for 8 hours.
Hope you enjoy!