October looks to be a friend-filled month. It seems that several of our friends from other states have traveled to New England at this time. Our first fall meet-up was Sunday night at our daughter Carrie's home where we were able to enjoy a soup and chili meal with Carrie's long-time friend Lori and her husband CJ. We had not seen Lori in many years and had never met her husband, so this was a nice time to catch up with all that's going on with them.
As Carrie and I brainstormed what to serve, we considered chili. Then we learned that Lori is not a fan of chili -- but her husband is. Carrie decided to make Cheeseburger Soup, a recipe we have enjoyed for years. She would make rolls to accompany the soup.
I volunteered to make chili. This has become my favorite chili recipe: Easy Crockpot Chili -- but I tweak it in a major way as far as how it's put together. I think it makes a huge difference. So what I do differently is, while browning the hamburger, I also brown the chopped onion and all of the spices along with it. I really think that doing this adds a very measurable depth of flavor to the chili. Sometimes I use ground turkey instead of beef, but with the spices cooked with the meat like this, one would never know it was turkey. Even though this is a super simple recipe, I usually get many comments about how good it is. I also cut WAY back on the meat in this recipe, using a pound or less rather than the 3 pounds called for. I often add an extra can of beans too -- usually kidney beans. To go with the chili, I brought tortilla chips.
Carrie's rolls were amazing. I guess they are a pretty standard recipe for pan rolls, but to make them slightly healthier she substituted maple syrup for sugar. It only called for 1/4 cup, but wow- that tweak really made a difference. One could taste a hint of maple in the rolls. They were wonderful.
For dessert, Carrie made a delicious apple cake.
This turned out to be the perfect menu for a Sunday night supper in fall. The food and fellowship were both delightful!
It sounds like the perfect autumn meal. Really nice that you and Carrie teamed up to provide it. It's always good to meet old friends again.
ReplyDeleteYes, that was so nice. We both like to cook and bake and so it's a joy to pool our talents to produce a yummy meal. And yes, so good to catch up with old friends, especially around a supper table!
DeleteI love this! The recipe for the cheeseburger soup sounds SO good, I may try that one soon. I love that you will be having lots of occasions for fellowship this month. October is a fun month to do things as it is cooler and everything is so cozy and pretty with the fall colors...maybe even a fire in a firepit or if you have a fireplace...I love October for fun fellowship times. These recipes are both good ideas!! Thank you for sharing it all with us. Enjoy your autumn days for me!
ReplyDeleteHope you enjoy the soup if you try it, Pam! It's been a very longtime favorite of ours. Yes, October was a fellowship-filled month for sure. So many good times!
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