Chili Cook-Off At Hitchcock Church is a Big Success

In what is fast becoming a tradition, the delicious aroma of chili permeated the air at Hitchcock Presbyterian Church on Greenacres Avenue on Sunday, March 9, as the Deacons held their 4th Annual Chili Cook-Off. This year's event attracted 10 chilimeisters. Their impressive recipes and unique creations, ranging from beef, pork, chicken, turkey, vegetarian, chipotle, mesquite, spicy, sweet, white, black, red kidney beans and chick peas .... to name just a few, gave the judges, Paul Lee, Christine McMurray and Jensina Olsen, quite a tough time in selecting this year's winners. After much deliberation here's who took the top prizes:

1st Place Ray Bailey, Jr. & Sr.

2nd Place Barbara & John Huddock

3rd Place Tom Veres

Crowd favorite Beverly Thornhill

Organized annually by Tom Veres and the Deacons, Veres said that the Chili Cook Off represents "food, family and fellowship" in a fun a festive way. The event started with 8 chilimeisters three years ago and has soared in popularity over the years. Especially noteworthy is how many children enjoy the event, tasting the variety of chili creations that are offered following service that day. Veres added that many of the chilimeisters who have children in Hitchcock's Youth Forum also donate several gallons of chili which are in turn sold by the youth as a fundraiser every September. Ray Bailey, Jr. is a member of the Scarsdale Fire Department, who also won top honors two years ago.

Here's the winning recipe for Paleo Crockpot Chili

Paleo Crockpot Chili

Ingredients

2 lbs. of ground beef
1 onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 red and 1 green bell pepper, both diced
1 cup of carrots, finely diced
1 cup of celery, diced
1 jalapeno, minced
(1) 28-ounce can of crushed or stewed tomatoes
(1) 14-ounce can of diced tomatoes
(1) 15-ounce can of tomato sauce

Spices

3 tbs. of chili powder
1 tbs. of oregano
1 tbs. of basil
2 tsp. of cumin
1 tsp. of salt
1 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. onion powder
1/2 tsp. of cayenne

Garnish

About 4 pieces of bacon, fried and crumbled
1 or 2 avocados, diced

Instructions

Saute onions and garlic together in a large saucepan over medium heat
Add ground beef to the saucepan, and brown
Drain excess fat
Transfer the cooked onions, garlic and meat to your crockpot
Add all vegetables and spices (except garnish ingredients) to the crockpot
Give it all a good stir
Set crockpot to low and allow to slow cook for about 6 hours
Spoon into individual bowls
Garnish with crumbled bacon and avocado slices
Serve hot and enjoy!

For more information, contact Tom Veres at tomthefoodguy@yahoo.com. Photo Credit: Nobuhiko Tsuyuki