Disappointment. It’s inevitable. It sucks. It gets better with time, but it still sucks. There is no way to avoid it in this business, so you have to learn some coping mechanisms. Some people meditate, take bubble baths, work out, etc. I like good food and distraction. A pot of my phenomenal veggie chili and a day playing my hidden in the picture games (don’t laugh they’re AWESOME) followed by some AmericasNextTopModel and LOST tonight should do the trick.

If you’re going to survive in this business without becoming the crazy bird lady on Lawrence and Broadway or jumping into Lake Michigan, I advise finding coping mechanisms of your own. You are welcome to borrow mine. I have a lovely little macbook and I download all of my games from http://www.bigfishgames.com . Right now I’m playing the Serpent of Isis and it’s doing the trick.

As far as the veggie chili goes I’ve tried many different recipes, and none of them have come even CLOSE to this one. I borrow it from Door Sixteen. It’s delicious, truly. 

Vegetarian Chili
serves 6-8

1 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
3 medium carrots, chopped
4 cloves garlic, diced
1 large yellow bell pepper, chopped
2 jalapeno peppers, seeds removed, diced
2 celery stalks, chopped
2 tbsp chili powder
28 oz can crushed tomatoes with basil*
14 oz can black beans*
14 oz can kidney beans*
1 cup corn kernels
1 tsp ground cumin
1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 1/2 tsp dried basil
2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 cup bulgar wheat
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

Heat oil in a large pot. Add onions, carrots and garlic; sauté until onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Add yellow pepper, jalapenos, celery and chili powder; cook another 10 minutes. Add tomatoes, beans (with liquid), corn, salt and spices. Bring to a boil. Cover, lower heat, and simmer for 20 minutes. Stir in bulgar wheat. Cover and simmer at least 30 minutes (I usually let everything simmer for a couple of hours to let the flavors really develop, but it’s okay to take it off when the veggies and bulgar are soft), stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Just as you’re taking the chili off the heat, stir in the balsamic vinegar. I know it might seem weird to put it in, but trust me—it really does make the chili taste extra amazing.

*I take the easy route and use canned beans and tomatoes. You can soak dried beans and use fresh tomatoes if you prefer, of course, but you will want to add water to make up for the liquid in the cans.

So there you have it. I hope this helps with your disappointments and/or heartaches. Eat up!

Tags: Musings

This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 22nd, 2009 at 11:00 am and is filed under Musings. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.