Rustic Italian Chili

​We all know how annoying it is to find a recipe online and have to scroll to Egypt till you finally get to the recipe at the bottom of the post. I'm not gonna do that to you. I will say, I'm a fan of Le Creuset dutch ovens, especially for this recipe. It keeps the heat contained so well, plus they are just so pretty. Happy cooking!

​​Rustic Italian Chili
What you need:
Olive oil
1 pound ground beef/lamb/turkey/mushrooms (whatever you like for this! - I switch between turkey and beef)
1 shallot or 1⁄2 red onion, diced
1-2 carrots, cleaned and diced
2 garlic cloves, diced
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1 TBSP Italian seasoning
1 15 ounce can tomato sauce
1 can cannellini or great northern beans, drained and rinsed
1 can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 cup ditalini pasta or macaroni pasta
6 cups beef broth (vegetable broth or water work too)
Parmesan cheese rind, optional
To make:
Drizzle olive oil in a dutch oven, turn on heat, add diced onion, carrots, and red pepper flakes. Stir for 2-3 minutes, then add garlic, Italian seasoning and ground beef (or whatever). Cook, stirring often, until meat is cooked through. Dump in the tomato sauce, beans and part of the broth. Start with 3-4 cups broth, saving the rest for later. Give it a good stir. Add the pasta and bring to a boil. If you have a parmesan rind, add it now. After 6-7 minutes, turn the heat to low, adding more broth as needed. Let simmer on low heat for 20 minutes. It’s so good eaten alone, with Saltine crackers (my fave!), or crusty bread. It’s even better THE NEXT DAY.
Enjoy!