CHILI FOR CHILLY DAYS
I have no idea why chili is more popular than any other hot soup on a cold day but it seems to be true. Even when I have several kinds of soup in the freezer my thoughts also turn to chili. Mary Ann sent me a recipe for Episcopalian Chili last spring that she found in a publication called "Positively Naperville." It's similar to Linda Tumilty's Taco Soup in my cookbook but not quite the same. Recipe said not to drain any of the ingredients and Mary Ann said the consistency was just right for her.
EPISCOPALIAN CHILI
- 2 pounds lean ground beef, browned and drained
- 2 cups chopped onions
- 2 packages taco seasoning mix (Mary Ann used one hot and one regular)
- 2 cans Rotel tomatoes with green chilies (original)
- 1 can kidney beans
- 2 cans white corn
- 1 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes with liquid
- 1-ounce package Hidden Valley Ranch salad dressing mix
- 1 can black beans
- 1 can pinto beans
- 1 can water
Brown meat and then add chopped onion and cook until tender. Add all other ingredients. Cook on medium to low heat, long enough to blend flavors, about an hour. Recipe makes 4 quarts of soup.
Source: "Positively Naperville" via Mary Ann Thaman.
"REDUCING YOUR CARBON FOOTPRINT"
Save about $92.00 a year by replacing traditional round incandescent bulbs with fluorescent lights.
Keep your home at 68 degrees (60 degrees when you're away). Each 2-degree difference can change your bill by 10 percent.
Keep air conditioning at 78 degrees when your home and off when you're away.
Use reusable containers for water.
If you let water run while you brush your teeth, 1 1/2 gallons of water per minute is going down the drain. A dripping faucet wastes 37 gallons of water a week.
A family of four would save 63,000 gallons of water a year by showering instead of taking baths.
Don't (plastic) bag it. Bring your own tote bag to the store. Worldwide, people use enough plastic bags every six months to carpet the planet. Instead of using a dryer, hang clothes outside on a line or in your basement. You could save up to $80.00 and reduce up to 1,200 pounds of CO2, a year.
Plant a tree. Every Sunday, Americans throw away so much newspaper it's like killing 500,000 trees. Every tree saved can filter out as much as 60 pounds of CO2 annually. Planting a tree or two so they shelter your home can cut your heating bill 2 to 8 percent |
and your cooling cost 8 to 18 percent.
Go unplugged. If you have appliances completely off instead of in standby mode, you can save about $250.00 a year on your electric bill. A DVD player in standby mode uses 85 percent of the energy it does when you're playing a movie on it.
Keep your vehicle in good working order. Replacing a clogged fuel filter can improve your car's mileage by as much as 10 percent. Keeping tires properly inflated can improve mileage by 3 percent.
Source: www.agriculture.purdue.edu/connections.
MEATLESS LENTEN ENTREES
There may have been a time when going meatless was a sacrifice but now it can be an advantage since we're encouraged to choose more alternatives to meat. Don't get me wrong, I still like a piece of cow or a pork chop, but I don't need them daily. Granted, some fish and seafood is more costly than meat but not tuna. I was introduced to Tuna Chop Suey at St. Joseph College in Renssalaer, Indiana, years ago. Simply replace meat with tuna in the recipe. It's really quite good! Serve creamed tuna over a baked potato or use it in a chef salad instead of ham or make Tuna Noodle Delight, a recipe of mine from the 70s.
TUNA NOODLE DELIGHT
- 1 8-ounce package reduced-fat cream cheese
- 1 cup reduced-fat dairy sour cream
- 1/4 cup milk
- 1 12-ounce can tuna packed in water, drained and flaked
- 2 tablespoons dry minced onion
- 1 teaspoon prepared horseradish
- 2 tablespoons chopped pimiento
- 1/4 teaspoon seasoned salt (like Lawry's)
- 1 8-ounce package broad noodles, cooked and drained
- 1/3 cup sliced almonds
Blend cream cheese with sour cream. Stir in milk, tuna, onion, horseradish, pimiento and seasoned salt. Add noodles; mix well. Spoon into buttered 8x8x2-inch glass casserole. Sprinkle with sliced almonds. Bake in 350oF oven for 30 minutes or until top is lightly browned. Recipe makes 4 to 6 servings.
TOP SEEDS
Seeds like nuts, have seen their nutritional reputation rise in recent years. They're high in calories but also rich in healthy fat, as well as a variety of nutrients, fiber and potentially beneficial phytochemicals. Many beans, nuts and grains are actually seeds. Some (such as sesame, poppy and pumpkin) are used as snacks and flavorings. Some seeds, notably sunflower, are among the best sources of vitamin E. Avoid highly salted seeds.
Source: University of California at Berkeley Wellness Letter, February 2009. |
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