together like [chili] and [cinnamon rolls]

this pandemic is really starting to get to me. it's now been well over a year since i've seen my family back home.  that along with the winter weather has me needing some warm comfort food, a combo of foods only a mid-westerner would love and even understand. chili and cinnamon rolls.

i made this combo tonight and the spicy mixed with the sweet took me back to my midwest childhood sitting in the school cafeteria.  you see, chili and cinnamon roll day was the one day no one brought a lunch.  everyone loved CCR day!

and it wasn't just at school, this combo was mad at home as well.  large community chili dinners would take place in my hometown before home football games.

this combo isn't for everyone, but for a guy missing his family, this mid-west meal, made kansas seem just a little bit closer.

good times, [chili soup]

"some of us have great stories, pretty stories that take place [downtown] with [booths] and friends and [chili soup]"

i know i do.

once again the chili cook-off proved to be a great time with great friends; friends from near and far, both old, and new. so thankful this annual event has become a tradition amongst my friends.

[chili] weather

i'm not sure if it's a "mid-west" thing, or if it was just my school, but when i was younger, chili and cinnamon roll day was by far the best lunch day on the calender.  hardly anyone brought their lunch and most of the trays were returned to the lunch lady completely cleaned, and it didn't stop at school.  throughout the fall, our little town would host large community chili dinners before football games. believe me, these events were where you wanted to be on a friday night, as it seemed the whole town would be there.

chili is just one of those meals.  a meal for a group. a meal to be enjoyed among friends, and really, it makes sense, you can't cook just a "little" chili.  the ingredients, preparation, and time needed to make a decent batch makes it worthy of a large group.  also, who wants to waste that wonderful room filling aroma on just a single nose.  a beautiful bouquet like that just beckons to be breathed in by a whole bevy of buddies.  in autumn, the scent of chili cooking is the perfume every home should be wearing.

secondly, chili in my mind signals the true start of fall.  a time when the temperature starts to drop, and you find yourself ditching the flip-flops and looking for a your favorite hoodie instead.  a time where the adventures of the spring and summer start to be stories told around the dinner table.

with all of these wonderful qualities chili possesses, it's no surprise wichita's downtown chili cook-off is one of my favorite days of the year.  the streets of downtown are filled with the sweet scent of chili cooking, and people venture out to enjoy one of the last weekends of perfect weather.  it has become a bit of a tradition amongst my friends to partake in this event, and this year was no different.  chili was sampled and enjoyed by all, and a few of us even entered the mr and miss chili pepper contest.  after sampling spoonful after spoonful of this september stew, it's also now a tradition to sit on our favorite patio and wash it all down with long island ice tea's.

good times, chili cook-offs.

a la [cart]

wichita just got a lot more urban, hipper, and tastier. we've moved up from hot dog carts to taco trailers. now, although we have a long long way to go before catching up with portland or austin, i love seeing more carts like this showing up around downtown.

if you're able to find this trailer, i recommend the carne asada taco's.