A bowl of spice

A Bowl of Spice

Every batch of Charley's Chili begins with a bowl of spice like this one. The spices are carefully chosen and mixed to exactly the right proportions and then set to the side while onions, garlic and beef are prepared to receive them. Of course, I can't tell you what the spices are or at what ratio they need to be measured to produces the mild delicious flavor of Charley's Chili, but I will let you know of one ingredient that I always get questions about from my customers. Cinnamon. I use a touch of cinnamon in every batch - not too much or it will overpower the other flavors - and it adds a sweetness and aroma that people love. Try it in your own chili and see if it doesn't tickle your taste buds.

Vive la France

Liberté, égalité, fraternité

Charley's Chili is made with beef from a Salers cattle breed which originated in France. One of the many wonderful things imported to the North American shores from our French cousins and so today we salute French Independence and the wonderful cuisine that has been perfected in L'hexagone. Would the French eat Charley's Chili? Perhaps they would and I like to think they would appreciate the delicate blending of spices and patient preparation and cooking process that goes in to every batch. French people visiting Virginia who have tried it are always complimentary and often have a second helping so my assumption is that France is a growth market.

In a wonderful book titled "THEY EAT HORSES, DON’T THEY?" By Piu Marie Eatwell the author notes:

 "Do the French see animals differently? As far as animals destined for the dinner table are concerned, it seems, yes. Many Visitors to France have referred to a 'Paris exception' on the dining front, necessitating the suspension of certain ethical commitments towards animal welfare if one is to partake of the authentic French gastronomic experience. Out of eight favourite dishes of France, seven are unequivocally of the fleshly kind, involving red meat or poultry. Less than 2 per cent of French people are vegetarian..."

 Sounds like the perfect Charley's Chili customer to me - "Vive la France"!!!

Swallows

Barn Swallows eating bugs

They roost in the portico of our house every spring and lay their eggs which in time hatch and start chirping. The first few years I would take down the nests, cracking the eggs on the ground as they fell only to watch the swallows build them again and lay more eggs. They make a real mess bringing sticks and mud to erect their temporary homes and leaving bird droppings everywhere on the porch. However, they are the greatest bug killers I've ever seen and since I stopped disrupting their domiciles I've never seen a mosquito near my home. It's a trade off but one I'm pretty happy to accommodate all summer long as I clean up bird poop and they swoop around the house eating bugs and chirping. That's natures way and who am I to fight against it? There's an entire industry devoted to getting rid of these small creatures but if you do that, then you'd have to spray chemicals all around your property to get rid of the bugs and who want's that?

Cows

Aventure Farm beef on the hoof

The beef in Charley's Chili comes from 100% organically raised Virginia cattle - a Salers/Angus cross which provides the secret ingredient to each delicious bowl. At Adventure Farm these cows eat Piedmont bluegrass, drink fresh spring water and they don't pump 'em full of steroids or antibiotics. They're finished on 6 weeks of grain to marbleize the meat and give it the delicious flavor that Adventure Farm beef is known for. They live a good life and are looked after with care and steady attention. The life of a cow is pretty mundane and consists mostly of stretching their neck to eat grass (or hay in the winter) and drink from a trough or stream. They can't be ridden, learn tricks, swim or do much of anything but moo and poop (which they do pretty well). I respect anyone who abstains from eating beef weather it be for ethical or medical reason or just a matter of taste, but if there ever was an animal meant to be eaten a cow would be it. So at Charley's Chili we do.

July Sun

Virginia Sunset

The days have just started to noticeably wane and they'll keep on getting shorter and shorter as the summer drifts away. Today's sun went down behind behind a mass of billowing, oddly shaped clouds hovering over the Blue Ridge Mountains. The kitchen is near complete and I will begin my cook in the coming days when the sun is at meridian and July heat is on me. The chili is good - too good for most, but I serve it up anyway. I will be serving it up this summer when it's hot and the sweat is pouring down your back - oh, that's the best time to eat chili, don't wait for the brisk autumn days because they're too far away. Eat a hot bowl of chili on a steaming Virginia July afternoon with a hazy lush green all around and the sweet blue up above.