easy Fall entertaining with friends . . .

We welcomed Halloween with COOL temperatures and light rain (ahhhh) . . . the perfect kind of evening for a cozy and casual dinner with friends before trick-or-treating.

It's a family tradition to have chili on Halloween, so I prepared a dinner very similar to this one, here.

Given the high energy of the evening, I kept our dinner low-key and served home-made traditional chili in a big cast iron pot right from the stove top, along with a toppings bar that I set up on our kitchen island that included three cheese, fresh avocados, sour cream, tortilla chips, and fresh cilantro.  

Since I didn't decorate for Halloween this year, spooky decor for our evening gathering was scarce. Instead, I opted for lighting tea lights . . . and placed them around the kitchen and dining room for an eerie twinkle.

I also lit upwards of 20 tea lights and placed them around our entry room, along with our glowing Jack O'Lantern, where we greeted trick-or-treaters.  I loved the eerily glow . . . something that I will absolutely do next year. I shared a few photos on Instagram.

"H" is for Halloween!

Here's a photo of our toppings bar. Sorry for not including the food in the photos. I didn't add the toppings to the bowls until just before our guests arrived, as I wanted everything to be as fresh as possible.

These sweet corn cakes were a HIT, along with the chili! YUM! I always serve them with chili. Their tender sweetness is amazing on top of warm spicy flavors.

Orange CRUSH made for the perfect Halloween bubbly!  

And there's nothing like offering your guests a warm drink to take on their way out trick-or-treating with their little ones. I offered Hot Cocoa, Apple Cider, and Pumpkin Spice coffee. 

One of the highlights of our evening was the rain! It added to the fun and excitement. We had a wonderful evening . . . and hope that you did, too!

Two of my little ones 

with their Halloween make-up on.

  

 

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traditional chili, sweet corn cakes . . . and a cozy Fall dinner

My mom gave me this beautiful ladle (and cast iron pot) several months ago.

It's old, very old. It was my Great-Great Grandmother's.  My Great-Grandma brought it with her when she came to the United States from Germany.

The end of the handle is engraved. Did you notice it?

                         Mutter means mother.

My Great-Great Grandmother's initials are also engraved on it, just above Mutter. . . .  v.d. the "V" was for Verona.

So when my mom gave it to me, along with my Great-Grandma's cast iron pot, I knew that I had something very, very special.  I can only imagine how many meals were made in this pot . . . and how many special occasions my Great- Great Grandma, Great-Grandma, and Grandma used the ladle.

I've made several meals in this pot. I have so many memories of my Grandma, Monie, making her famous chili in it. She made it every year for her annual Halloween party. She retired the pot when she was 97 year old.

Since writing this post here, I've been researching and sampling traditional chili recipes . . . . looking forTHE ONE.  The one that is most like my late Grandma's chili.

After months of searching, sampling, and eating . . . I found it!

It's Paula Deen's Taco Chili recipe! I shouldn't be surprised, I guess. Paula Deen might be the only celebrity chef still publishing good old-fashioned, home-style recipes. Her Taco Chili recipe is thick, rich, and FULL of flavor, and it tastes just like my grandma's did. Although my grandma didn't add a packet of ranch dressing mix to the chili like Paula's recipe, it sure tasted like she did.

I was so excited when I tried it for the first time. It felt like I hit the jack pot!

When our oldest son walked through the front door yesterday evening and said, "Mom, it smells like Monie's kitchen," I felt my heart sing.

You see, he's old enough to remember my grandma's chili and her insanely fun Halloween parties.

In honor of tradition, my Grandma, heirlooms, and family . . .  
We gathered yesterday evening to enjoy a traditional chili dinner that I cooked in my Grandma's cast iron pot (for hours and hours and hours), and then served using my Great-Great Grandmother's ladle.

I'm so thankful for family and tradition.

I hope to re-create this evening in honor of my grandma every year.

Who knows . . . maybe my little girls will grow up and feel inspired to host an evening like this for their families.

~ our cozy Fall dinner menu ~

traditional chili

sweet corn cakes

tortilla chips

garnish with sour cream, cheese, and avocado

*     *     *     *     *

IBC bottled Black Cherry soda

*     *     *     *     *

pumpkin sugar cookies & caramel ribbon ice cream

Traditional Chili 

ingredients

1 (16 ounce) cans kidney beans

1/2 cup pinto beans

1 (1 1/4 ounce) packages taco seasoning

1 (1 ounce) package ranch dressing mix

3 tablespoons onions, minced

1 teaspoon chili powder

1/4 teaspoon cumin

2 -4 cups water

1 (11 3/4 ounce) cans diced tomatoes & green chiles (such as Rotel)

1 (16 ounce) can tomato sauce

1 lb ground beef, cooked, drained

preparation

Brown ground beef with onion, drain off grease.

In a large pot combine all other ingredients and let simmer on low heat 2-4 hours, 
or until beans are tender.

Serve with tortilla chips, cheese, sour cream, green onions and avocados.

I love sweet corn cakes, especially with chili!  I crumble them on top, so that each bite of chili bursts with the flavors of sweet and spicy. It's so so so good.

When I serve a cozy meal like this one, I like to keep things simple and easy to clean up . . . so I take a large piece of parchment paper and place it on the center of our dining room table. Instead of pouring the tortilla chips into a bowl, I pour them onto the parchment paper. And since chili stains, it also keeps my tablecloth clean when the ladle fall from the pot onto the table (which seems to happen every time).

We have a family tradition of our own  . . . .
We gather lots of pillows and blankets, and cozy up on the couch to watch "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charley Brown" just before Halloween every year. So last night, after dinner, we gathered in our family room with Halloween cookies and caramel ribbon ice cream  . . . and watched as Linus patiently waited for The Great Pumpkin.

I baked several batches of Nestle's Halloween Sugar cookies earlier in the day, as this is something that I've done for my oldest son since he was two years old (for every holiday!).  I love them too!

One of my favorite ways to eat chili . . . right out of a mug!

 

LET'S STAY in touch!

Simply Suzannes at Home

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