Chili & Scene It?

Have you ever played Scene It?  A few years back, Ben and I picked up a "The Simpsons" edition for an after Christmas sale.  We've only played a couple of times, but last night the game came out of hiding after another rousing game of Scattegories.  Unfortunately, I lost both.  Ben is better at games than me for the most part.  From time to time, I can beat him in word games, such as Scrabble.  I also almost always win at Guitar Hero, which seems to infuriate him.  I guess he believes that girls shouldn't be good at video games. 

I tired a new Chili recipe last night that was adapted from allrecipes.com.  I was looking for something new and saw that it used BEER as a liquid base!  How awesome!  The end result was a very hearty, very spicy chili.  I halved the original recipe for the two of us.  Enjoy! 

Spicy Chili
adapted from allrecipes.com

2 lbs. ground beef chuck
1 lb. Italian sausage
3 (15 ounce) cans chili beans, drained
1 (15 ounce) can chili beans, in spicy sauce (undrained)
2 (28 ounce) cans diced tomatoes in juice (I used diced tomatoes with green chilis)
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
1 large yellow onion, chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
2 green chili peppers, seeded and chopped (I omitted these since the tomatoes had chilis)
1 T bacon bits
4 cubes beef bouillon
1/2 cup beer
1/4 cup chili powder
1 T. Worcestershire sauce
1 T. minced garlic
1 T. dried oregano
2 tsp. ground cumin
2 tsp. hot pepper sauce (Tabasco)
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. black pepper
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. white sugar
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (for garnish)

Directions:

Heat a large stockpot over medium-high heat.  Cook sausage and ground chuck until well browned.  Drain excess grease.  Pour in all ingredients (except cheese) and stir well.  Cover and simmer on low for 2 hours minimum stirring occasionally.  After 2 hours, taste and adjust spices as needed.  Remove from heat and serve with cheddar cheese.  Refrigerate leftovers.

I decided to start celebrating the end of 2010 by sleeping in this morning and skipping my workout.  My goal is to get a great workout in tomorrow to start off the new year right!  Ben and I are just staying in tonight and celebrating New Years Eve together.  Steak, mashed potatoes, and steamed green beans are on the menu.  We also may enjoy a couple bottles of wine/campaign.  Someone may also be turning 27 at midnight!  :)   Happy New Year!