After college, Adam and I moved to Indianapolis. Living in little apartments and adjusting to our new jobs and forty hour work weeks, our weekends became precious.
We would be exhausted from the week on Friday evenings so they became nights in with a bottle of wine and take out. Saturdays were always full of some sort of adventure be it visiting friends or going to check out a cool festival or destination in our new city.
And, on Sunday’s?
Sunday’s were for us and for relaxing. We would sleep in and cook brunch complete with mimosa’s or bloody mary’s. And, as the summer turned to fall, our afternoons of beer by the apartment complex pool change to beer during football games.
(Life was good and easy at 22.)
Being in Indy, we had to root for the Colts. Adam had his whole life and I, a newbie to the city and in love with a big fan, easily assimilated.
We would try our best to get tickets to a couple home games each season to get in on the action with tailgates or pregame drinks at local bars. But, even when the team was away, we still would throw on our jerseys and celebrate with bloody’s followed by beers and, of course, something good to eat.
We would make some fun appetizer or snack and switch it up from week to week. But, for the main course, nine times out of ten we would make chili.
Chili is easy. It’s so football. It’s so fall. As it cooks, low and slow in the crock pot, all afternoon it fills the air with it’s cozy, warm, spiciness. Perfect for a relaxing day in.
Since Adam and I started growing a big garden about three years ago, I also do my best to can or preserve anything and everything I can. (Pun intended…)
I started doing lots of salsa because it was the obvious thing to do with lots of tomatoes. But, over the years, I have come to learn that we don’t eat that much salsa over the winter. Instead, I looked at what we like to eat with a tomatoes as a key ingredient and it was a clear, I needed to can a lot of chili base.
Having chili base in the pantry makes heating up a pot of chili so easy. The spices, heat from peppers and sweetness tomatoes are there. We just have to add beans and cooked meat, throw it in the Crock Pot and it’s all good to go.
Onions, peppers, jalapeños, and tomatoes all from the garden make this a quick and easy base to whip up without a trip to the store. And, even just making the base fills the house with great, fall smells thanks to the earthy spices and long cooking time.
Perfect for a September Sunday game day when prepping for cold Sunday afternoons to come!
- 24 Large ripe tomatoes, roughly chopped
- 3 medium onions, chopped
- 4 medium bell peppers, chopped (I used green because they are in the garden, but you can use red or yellow too.)
- 2 jalapeños, seeded and finely chopped
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 3 tablespoons salt
- 3 tablespoons pickling spice
- 1 tablespoon celery seed
- 1 tablespoon mustard seed
- 2 1/2 cups white vinegar
- Combine the tomatoes, onion, peppers, jalapeños, sugar and salt into a large sauce pan. Cook on low for about 40 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Tie the spices in a cheese cloth and add to the tomato mixture. Cook in the sauce pan for about 45 minutes or until the mixture has reduced by about one half. Stir frequently as the base thickens so it does not stick to the pan.
- Add the vinegar and cook slowly to a desired thickness. (This can take a long time.)
- Remove the spice bag.
- Pour into hot pint jars, leaving 1/4 in of headspace. Add lids and rings. Process for 15 minutes in a boiling hot water bath.
- Place on cooling rack and let sit for 8-12 hours. Check to be sure all the jars sealed. Label and store for up to a year.
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