Homemade Chili to Give

Needed some gifts for our several "Pay It Forward" campaigns (I've got one here and one one Facebook, and my husband has one on Facebook) plus for a couple of folks we (whoops!) missed at Christmas, so we made jars of homemade chili mix. The recipe is sort of a combo of Clint's favorite recipe, the one in Homemade, Best Made, and my frijoles soup recipe. And, yeah, that's right---I have a guacamole dish in the shape of a cactus. I'm originally from San Antonio, so I can do things like that. ;-)

In a quart jar:

1 small package dried kidney beans

In two small baggies:

Seasoning packet #1:

1 Tbsp onion flakes

1 Tbsp chicken boullion

1/2 tsp garlic powder

Seasoning packet #2:

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp basil

1/2 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp thyme

2 1/2 Tbsp chili powder

1/4 tsp red pepper

1 bay leaf

Put the following directions on an attached card:

Additional ingredients required: 1 lb ground beef, 1 can tomato paste, 1 can tomato sauce

Rinse and sort the beans; soak them overnight in water that covers the beans by about an inch and a half. Drain.

In a large stock pot, place the beans, 2 quarts of water, and seasoning packet #1. Bring to a rapid boil, then lower the heat to about medium and simmer for one hour. Add water gradually if stock boils down.
Brown one pound of ground beef in a skillet and drain off the excess grease. Add the cooked ground beef, seasoning packet #2, 1 can of tomato paste, and 1 can of tomato sauce to the pot of beans. Turn up the heat and bring once again to a boil, then lower heat again and simmer for 30 minutes or until the beans are soft. Discard the bay leaf and serve with grated cheddar cheese and sour cream.