Cincinnati Chili

From The Kitchn: "Cincinnati chili - a blend of cinnamon, hot pepper, cumin, and, yes, chocolate. It's not a gimmick or a mole-wannabe. Cincy chili is rich treat all its own. When made well it has a smoky, elusive blend of flavors. Cinnamon and cocoa play supporting roles, lifting the other flavors and bringing out the taste of the meat. It's addictive, and usually it's eaten over spaghetti. Those Ohioans love their chili - apparently there are more chili parlors in Cincinnati than any other American city! (Move over Texas...)"

"The combination of spaghetti and chili without beans may be sacrilegious to those with other notions of chili, but this is worth a try on its own merits. It's also a quick and filling weeknight dinner."

Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef
1 onion, minced
4 cloves garlic, minced
crushed red pepper flakes, to taste
2 tablespoons chili powder

3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon chipotle pepper
1 teaspoon salt

2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1 15-ounce can tomato sauce
1 cup chicken or beef broth
½ cup water

spaghetti, cooked
cheddar cheese, shredded (optional)
kidney beans, (optional)

Directions: Film a large, heavy frying pan with olive oil. Heat over medium high heat and when hot add the beef, minced onion and garlic, and chili powder. Sprinkle in crushed red pepper to taste. Cook for about eight minutes or until the meat is browned.

In a separate bowl combine the cocoa, cinnamon, allspice, cumin, chipotle pepper, and salt. Add and stir fry for another couple minutes until fragrant.

Add the bay leaves, Worcestshire sauce, vinegar, tomato sauce, broth and water. Turn heat to low and simmer for an hour.

Serve over spaghetti with minced onion, hot kidney beans, and cheddar cheese.
(Serves 8)

"Our recipe departs from some authentic elements (there is, of course, much debate over what constitutes truly authentic Cincinnati chili). Many traditional recipes don't brown the meat - they boil or simmer it instead. We like the browned, deep flavor though.
Also, to experience this truly, you have to try it all five ways:
• Two-way: Spaghetti topped with chili (the basics)
• Three-way: Chili, spaghetti, and finely grated cheddar cheese (lots of it!)
• Four-way: Chili, spaghetti, cheese, and minced onions
• Five-way: Chili, spaghetti, cheese, minced onions, and hot kidney or chili beans"

See http://www.thekitchn.com/thekitchn/main-dish/recipe-cincinnati-chili-041148.

The original recipe called for crumbling 2 dried red peppers into the meat/onion/garlic/chili powder mix as it cooks. I just put crushed red pepper in, and it worked well, so I modified the recipe a bit.

When You Are Engulfed in Flames

The other book I finished while I was on vacation was When You Are Engulfed in Flames, by David Sedaris. You've heard David Sedaris on This American Life (the best show on radio, IMHO), and other places. This was my favorite of Sedaris's books. All of the stories in it were interesting, funny, and memorable. Sedaris has a distinctive voice, and while I'm reading along I sometimes like to have his voice be the voice in my head as I go -- makes it even funnier. Sedaris is a master storyteller, with a wealth of eccentric experiences from which to draw. I hope you give this one a try; you'll enjoy it.

Contagious

While I was on vacation in Florida last week, I finished Contagious by Scott Sigler. Contagious is the sequel to Infected: A Novel, and it's a real sizzler. I couldn't put this one down. Infected was a good read, but Contagious was just awesome. Fun from start to finish. Go read it.

The Slave Ship

Just finished The Slave Ship: A Human History, by Marcus Rediker. One of the more interesting things I learned from reading this book was about myself: I learned that I've had kind of a grammar-school conceptualization of the Atlantic slave trade, and that has not been serving me well in terms of putting that shameful part of the world's history in its proper perspective. I've long known that history is first and foremost a product of whoever writes it (Churchill had a particularly good grasp of this idea), and it follows that the history books we use to educate our children have their particular points of view and biases, and that these in turn can (and do) abuse what might otherwise be a fairly accurate account of what actually happened in the past. Of course, as a historian, Dr. Rediker has his own take on this story, and he is a self-proclaimed activist, but his scholarship here is strong and convincing. I think this book is well worth reading, and I hope you'll read it.

Dr. Rediker won the George Washington Book Prize for The Slave Ship. This prize is given to honor the "most important new book about America's founding era."

New Hotness

Yesterday, upon my return from CSHALS 2009 (which was terrific, thank you very much!), I got to open up ("unbox" is the cool term for it) my new Kindle 2. You probably already know that I was (am) a huge fan of my old Kindle, and that I was a pretty early adopter of it.

Anyway, I think the Kindle 2 is a tangible improvement on all aspects of the original. I really like the new form factor; I haven't once pushed a button I didn't intend to push in the first place. The 5-way controller is just right for the interface, and while the original scroll wheel was well done I'm happier with the 5-way.

I like the slidey power switch at the top. Turns it on, turns it off, puts it to sleep, wakes it up, and resets it. Simple. And I think the Kindle 2 goes to sleep and wakes up faster than the original.

I was a little surprised when I got my Kindle 2 that it wasn't pre-registered for me. As an early adopter who ordered before 10th Feb, I got moved to the top of the list (so it actually arrived Wednesday, not Saturday), and maybe they just didn't have the time to do it. No matter, it took just a few minutes, and I got the opportunity to clean up my content a little bit (it's so nice that Amazon keeps all that stuff for me online).

I also got the Amazon Kindle 2 leather cover, and I really like it. I also liked the quirky cover that came with the original, because it really was just perfect for the Kindle, but the Kindle 2 cover is a very nice piece of work. I'm pretty sure my new Kindle isn't going to come loose from its cover occasionally anymore, as the new hinge is pretty clever and solid.

I loved my old Kindle. I love my Kindle 2 even more.

Free-Range Chickens

Free-Range Chickens, by Simon Rich, is just a little thing, comprised of short takes on various themes (prehistoric times, animals, etc.). But it's funny all the way through. I had a lot of fun with it, and you will, too.

Lauriel's Peanut Butter Cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 cup peanut butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 egg

Directions: Combine all ingredients, mix well. Form cookies, place on cookie sheet, and make criss-cross pattern with a fork on each cookie. Bake at 350° F until done. (Serves --) Download recipe.