Burgers are Easy for Kids That Don't Like Chili

My children always shy away from foods that have lots of flavor. But that's precisely the kind of food that my husband and I like best. So what do you do when you crave a bowl of spicy chili and it's a safe bet that the kids won't like it?

My motto is "give them what they like." I make beef patties for the kids and they get hamburgers instead. While many chili recipes use tomato sauce and chili powder, I use a combination of fresh and dried chiles to make the sauce. If you aren't all that quick with a knife, frozen bell peppers and onions work nicely instead of fresh. The poblano and ancho chiles provide the bulk of the flavor in this somewhat spicy sauce. Poblanos are often labeled pasillas in markets. They are a dark glossy green color and somewhat heart shaped with a blunt pointed tip. Ancho chiles are dried poblanos with a flavor often described as a spicy sweet raisin.

Chili Con Carne

1 pound extra lean ground beef
Salt and pepper for seasoning
Optional Garnish: Grated cheddar cheese

GROWN-UPS
2 dried ancho chiles
1 1/2 cups low sodium beef broth
1 large poblano chile, rinsed, seeded and chopped
1 large red or green bell pepper, rinsed, seeded and chopped (about 1 1/2 cups)
1 small yellow onion, peeled and chopped (about 1 cup)
4-6 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 15-ounce can low-sodium black beans, rinsed and drained

CHILDREN
2 hamburger buns
Optional: ketchup

Make 2 patties using about half of the beef. Season with salt and set aside.

Place the ancho chiles in a micro safe dish, add the beef broth and microwave at full power for 3-4 minutes. Stir and set aside. Heat a medium-size non-stick saucepan for a few minutes over high heat. Add the remaining beef, season with salt and pepper and cook while stirring, breaking into small pieces. When cooked through, drain away any excess fat and transfer to another dish. Add the poblano, bell pepper, onion, garlic, cumin, and oregano to the skillet. Cook while stirring for 3-4 minutes until the onions and peppers begin to soften. Pour the beef broth from the anchos into the saucepan. Remove the stems from the anchos and discard. Chop and add to the saucepan. Bring to a boil, cover and cook over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes.

While the sauce is cooking, place the hamburgers in a heated skillet and cook for about 5 minutes on each side or until cooked through. Top with grated cheddar cheese and serve on buns.

Puree the sauce right in the pot using a hand held immersion blender. (If you don’t have one of these handy kitchen tools, mash the contents with a potato masher and thicken the sauce with a tablespoon or two of tomato paste.) Add the browned beef and beans to the sauce; heat through. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Garnish with grated cheddar cheese, if desired.

GROWN-UPS
Calories 400; Calories from fat 70; Total fat 8g; Saturated fat 1.5g;
Cholesterol 90mg; Sodium 640mg; Carbohydrate 57g; Dietary fiber 19g; Sugars 10g; Protein 34g

CHILDREN
Calories 290; Calories from fat 100; Total fat 12g; Saturated fat 3g
Cholesterol 90mg; Sodium 350mg; Carbohydrate 22g; Dietary fiber 1g; Sugars 3g; Protein 24g

Kristene Fortier, author of The Whole Family Cookbook lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her family. Send questions or tips to pickykids@aol.com and while online visit www.healthykitchen.com.

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