By 
‘Chillli! Chille? Chili?’
courtesy of ‘goodcatmum’
If last weekend told you anything, it’s that cold weather is right around the corner. I’m writing, dear reader, to inform you of a method of defense against chill. I want to bestow upon you a chili recipe that will warm your body and soul. A chili recipe that is, as of last night, award winning. A chili recipe that has never been written down, before. My very own “Kirk’s Almost Famous Chili Recipe,” winner of the 2009 Miriam’s Kitchen Chili Cookoff.
My recipe is a bastardized Cincinnati style chili. Cincinnati style is sweeter and more complex than its Texan cousin. It’s more about the spices than about the types and amount of chilis that go into it. This isn’t to say that it’s weak or anything, it’s just different. What I tried to do was marry the complexity of Cincinnati chili with the beefiness and savor of Texas chili.
It should come out with a subtly sweet broth that has a slow burn towards the back of the throat. There are hints of bourbon and cinnamon that go very nicely with the change in season and make the chili palatable enough to be eaten without rice or corn bread. Ideally, everything will come out in balance: sweet, but not too sweet and spicy, but not too spicy. And yes, it has beans. Sorry, purists.