Fall is on its way, and I don’t know about you all, but there’s one thing I enjoy a bit about Autumn more than anything else — the food. My wife and I kicked off the season Wednesday by pressure cooking the most marbled chuck eye roast you’d ever laid eyes on. OK, maybe it wasn’t that marbled, but after years and years of overcooking roasts in a crockpot, I give our pressure cooker every bit of kudos.
I seasoned the slab with Montreal steak seasoning, a new one for me on a roast, and I always add a bouillon cube into the water for that extra flavor. We do have to break a rule with the pressure cooker and do the veggies separately, but when it all comes together — wow. Another hearty favorite of ours is chili. As a kid, we’d do store-bought chili and never really made much of our own. I never truly formed an opinion on the foodstuff until my professional years.
Working in Searcy under my former boss, Jacob Brower, I learned the election night rigamarole and that most newspapers spring for a few pizzas for their working-until-midnight reporters.
Not us. Jacob took it upon himself personally to change newsrooms nationwide and introduced Election Night Chili, which isn’t trademarked but should have been.
Chili itself is a versatile dish. The obvious question for any chili lover has always been the same — beans or no beans?
At the risk of being an outsider, I’m a no beans kind of guy. Lucky for me, Jacob makes a no beans kind of chili.
There were many election nights in Arkansas and Missouri that he broke out the good stuff. Every time, we ate it until it was gone.
My good friend was generous enough to pass the recipe on to me, and I make it at least three or four times a year. Every time I do, I send him a photo of the batch, and he asks if I have figured out his secret ingredient he left off the recipe he gave me.
I have never made a batch of that chili I didn’t 100 percent enjoy, but I haven’t figured out that ingredient. I do know one thing — it’s not beans.
My wife comes in to save the day when neither of those hit the hearty meal spot.
Soup is a great cold-weather meal, but a thick, hearty potato soup brings it to another level.
Sitting here writing this piece across the couch from my wife, I asked if I could share her secret. She leered at me, but a smile broke out, and she said, “I don’t care. I got it from Panera!”
Source aside, I can vouch for this technique. Where most would boil the potatoes and then work in the broth and soupiness, there’s a step in between that packs a baked potato punch.
Once boiled, drizzle those potato chunks with olive oil and toss them in the oven for a bit to crisp. While you lose most of the crisp in the soup, you don’t lose its flavor.
It truly is a meal that will flatten your back to a La-Z-Boy for a few hours.
The running theme through all of these meals is the togetherness of them. While we combine as chefs in our kitchen, it’s also an opportunity to engage as a family. With the time it takes to make each of these, there’s no shortage of entertainment and conversation.
Food, while a basic need, also offers those opportunities to connect with others, whether cooking it or eating it.
If you have some hearty family recipes you’d be willing to share, we are always looking for new ways to fatten us up for the winter.
Kyle Troutman has served as the editor of the Cassville Democrat since 2014. In 2017, he was named William E. James/Missouri Outstanding Young Journalist for daily newspapers, and in 2022, he won a Golden Dozen Award from ISWINE. He may be reached at 417-847 2610 or ktroutman@cherryroad.com.
KYLE TROUTMAN
