Chunky Beer Chili in Homemade Bread Bowls

It's inevitable.  I take the kids to get their flu shots on Friday and today being a Sunday, they both have a cold.  Is that old wise tail true?  Getting a flu shot gets you a cold?

Who knows, but they both have one.

So it's been a weekend of fun and snot at our house.  But, I made the perfect, cold-curing, food.  Chili.  Nothing makes your nose run more than a hot, steamy bowl of chili.

This batch of chili I took to another level.  I swapped out a few ingredients and then poured it into a nice, crusty, homemade bread bowl.  Ah....

You know when you go to Panera Bread and order their insanely good Broccoli Cheddar Soup in a bread bowl, drain the soup in about 2 minutes and them promptly tear apart the bowl and gobbled that down?  That is what I did here.

It was glorious.

I have been making this type of bread for a few years now, and I'm dumbstruck to why I never made bread bowls out of it until this weekend.

Chunky Beer Chili

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2 lbs. ground beef

1/2 onion, chopped

2 T. olive oil

3 gloves of garlic, minced

1 can Mrs. Grimes chili beans

1 can diced tomatoes

1 fresh tomato, chopped

1 8 oz. can tomato sauce

3 c. V-8 or tomato/vegetable juice

1 can or bottle dark beer

2 T. chili powder

1 T. cumin

1 T. salt

In a large stockpot, saute onion in olive oil, until just translucent.  Add in garlic and ground beef.  Cook until no longer pink.  Drain off any excess fat.  Add in all other ingredients, stir and let simmer for at least one hour.

Homemade Bread Bowls

*adapted from here

{Print this Recipe!}

3 c. lukewarm water

7 c. flour

1 T. salt

1 1/2 T. instant yeast

Combine all ingredients in a large plastic bowl or in a food safe food bucket.  Mix and stir everything together for a nice, sticky dough.  Cover the bowl or bucket and let rise for at least 2 hours, or up until 7 days.

When you are ready to bake the dough, take out a small handful (the size of a softball) and place the dough on a piece of parchment paper, sprinkle a light dusting of flour over the dough and let rest for 45-60 minutes.

Preheat your oven and baking stone (if using one) to 450 degrees.  Also, place a shallow pan on the bottom rack of your oven to preheat and have 1 c. of hot water ready to go.  When ready to bake, slash the dough 3 times, going back 1/2" deep into dough.  Place the bread in the oven (lifting parchment paper onto the stone), pour the water into the bottom shallow pan and quickly shut the oven door.  This creates a steamy oven.

Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a deep golden brown.  Allow to cool and cut out center of bread for chili, leaving the top for a dipper.  Yields 6 bread bowls, depending on size.

*If you don't end up using all the dough, just keep in the fridge for up to 7 days, using when needing.

Oh my gosh, then dig in.  It will be the most delicious bread you've ever had.  And the most delicious chili.  The end.

I've got a busy week coming up, including another cooking show segment to be taped for WQAD, Channel 8 on Tuesday.  We are showcasing family recipes, and I'm cooking up this one.

Sorry, another soup recipe.  I just can't get enough!

Before I leave to tend to my snotty noses...the winner of the King Arthur Flour Giveaway is...

Teresa Young • 2 days ago

Twitter follower @tmy56

Teresa, email me please!  We'll get this awesome prize pack sent your way.