Chili Mac - cassoulet or "hot dish"?

During a light rain this last week we got quite a little chill here in the San Gabriel Valley area of Los Angeles.  Low near 40 may look like a heat wave to my fam in Minnesota but here its enough to drag out the sweats and heavy jackets.  Days like this I like my comfort food.

I'm not quite sure where this particular dish came from.  My Ma has made similar over the years with the same name.  I can remember having it when I was really little in MI so I suspect the idea of chili and pasta drifted our way from Ohio where the folks in "cincy" serve their chili over spaghetti.

With the beans and such stewed together with meats is has a vague resemblance to the classic french cassoulet.  Make that very vague.  Of course we call one meal dishes casseroles with its route in that classic here in the US.  Well, most of us do except for the Iron Range of Minnesota where they call it a "hot dish".  Regardless of what you call it, it is hot, hearty and tasty.  Comfort food at its best.

Chili Mac

1 1/2 lb lean ground beef

1 onion - coarsely chopped

1 T chopped garlic

1 14 oz can chopped tomato

1 14 oz can tomato sauce

2 14 oz cans kidney beans - drained

2 14 oz cans low sodium beef broth

salt

1/2 t ground pepper

1 t oregano

2 bay leaf

2 T chili powder

olive oil

1 c elbow macaroni.

In large sauce pot add enough oil to just coat the bottom.  Heat until it begins to shimmer over medium-high heat.  Crumble in ground beef.  Add black pepper.  Cook until meat is no longer pink.  Move meat to side of pan, add onion.  Cook 5-10 minutes stirring occasionally until onions translucent and meat has some really dark caramelization.  Add garlic, oregano, chili powder, bay leaf and cook 1 minute longer.

Add tomato, tomato sauce and broth.  Heat to boil then reduce heat.  Simmer covered about 1 hour.  Stir occasionally.  Test seasoning at this point and add more salt if needed.

Add macaroni and stir in.  Cook 10-15 minutes longer until macaroni is cooked through.  If the mixture starts to dry out add 1/4 - 1/2 c water.  Serve hot with grated cheddar/jack cheese.

Wiener Bun Junk

Growing up in Michigan and Missouri, winters were bitter cold, very snowy or just cold, damp a rainy. Or any combination thereof. The first sign of winter was the change in comfort food. The winter version that still is the ultimate cold weather lunch is "wiener bun junk". My Mom got this from who knows where but was a hit for all 5 of us kids growing up.

Easy enough to prep, makes a ton for a few days of lunches for the gang. Totally satisfying to have that warm hot dog bun full of melted cheese and meat. It makes you ready to head out again for the afternoon sledding or whatever one does in the winter. With Velveeta and Spam, two of the important Midwestern food groups, how bad can it be? The recipe:

Wiener Bun Junk
1 lb Velveeta brand processed cheese food
1 can Spam
1 onion - sliced in to 6 or so chunks
1/2 green pepper - sliced into 3-4 chunks
2 T mayo or miracle whip
1 T tomato paste or ketchup
Hot Dog Buns.
Aluminum foil

Preheat oven to 350F.

Slice the cheese into 6 chunks that will fit into your food grinder feed tube. Do the same with your Spam. Start feeding your ingredients starting with cheese, alternating between chunks and ending with a vegie chunk into a large bowl below the extruding end of your food grinder. Add mayo and tomato product. Gently fold ingredients until combined.

Split hot dog buns. Cut piece of foil about 12-16 inches long. Spread about 2T of the mixture onto one opened hot dog bun. Put two buns per foil sheet. Carefully fold the foil up and over the buns, gently rolling up the ends to the filled buns.

Bake for 12-15 minutes until warmed through and all melted.

There is a bit debate on what size grinder tool you use. My Mom uses the small hole die for the finer grind as done my sister Niki. My sister Val uses the food processor, but for me that is too much like a puree of mushy baloney. I prefer the large hole die as it gives a coarse grind allowing for bigger bits in each bite. Up to you, doesn't change the taste, just the texture.

It is important that you end with a chunk of vegie as that cleans up any of the cheese still in the tube. Makes our washing up later that much easier.

There it all is. I opted for ketchup as I didn't have tomato paste. Tomato paste is the preferred option, but heck I was lazy and did this trailer park substitution. Whatever works, eh!?
Don't over fill the buns. Much more than the 2T allotted you have most of it oozing out the bun all over the packet and just have a mess that takes the enjoyment of savoring each bite.
All toasty warm and ready to enjoy. Avoid the temptation to put more than 2 buns per packet. More than 2 gets you cold centers or overly crispy ends. Foil is cheap just do it 2 per packet for maximum enjoyment.