As hurricane Sandy was approaching the east coast, everyone in this area was heading to the grocery store in droves to get storm essentials. There are several grocery store options near me but my favorite is Wegmans. If you don't have a Wegmans in your area then think of it as a Whole Foods and regular grocery store mixed together but it also has a killer hot and ready food area and AMAZING wine and cheese section...oh everything about Wegmans is amazing.......except the crowds. The store near me is apparently a favorite of everyone else in this area and it doesn't matter when you go, there are always a ton of people there. During the holidays they actually have police men directing traffic into the store parking lot and have several exits blocked off so you can only leave one way. I hoped that maybe since I am currently a stay at home Mom (and actor/singer) that I could hit the store during the day on Friday and it wouldn't be so bad but of course it was pure pandemonium. I pulled into the parking lot and it was packed but thankfully this store has "parents with children" parking (i am so in the Mom club now that I get special parking? Awesome! We deserve some perks right?!) and I was able to slip into a spot right next to the cart corral. I put little Lily into a cart, grab my short list, say a prayer, and head in. Just getting to the doors can be nerve wracking as I dodge every other Mom in Sterling with the same idea and working folks on their lunch breaks trying to grab some sushi or hot sandwich. And it just gets worse in the store. I walk down the entry hallway and there is a stream of carts coming at me, briskly walking, to get the hell out of there and just as I was about to turn the corner into the produce section, I am stopped by someone. This very sweet older woman spies Lily in her carrier and just stops in the middle of the chaos and says; "Oh you are the nicest thing I have seen all day!" Now this was so very sweet but it forced me to also stop in the middle of the chaos. She was smiling at Lily and asked how old she was and then said "well you be safe in there, seems like every other mother and child in there area is in there and she is way too sweet to get in the middle of that!" As she says this I turn my head to look out on the sea of people pushing past each other grabbing up apples and bananas, Mom's scolding children not to touch anything, older folks moving at there own pace while crazed Mom's speed around them to grab carrots, and business men and women just trying to avoid all this to get over to the hot food and shaking their heads. This lovely woman and I are at the mouth of the beast where every thing is coming and going. We are only paused for a moment but I swear if these carts had horns on them, people would be honking at us to MOVE!
I see the pile up behind me and figure I better get moving so I thank the nice lady and push forward with caution.
Once completely inside I make sure to always watch where I am going and look both ways before exiting an aisle. If you just keep your eyes peeled and try to be quick, then you can make it through unscathed. To my shock, after I left produce and entered into the wine and cheese section, it was almost empty! Oh sweet sweet charity. Well I took my time there and really enjoyed searching out a good cheese to take home, grabbed a couple (or three or four) bottles of my favorite cheaper Cabernet and then decided, since it was so nice in the section, that I would check out the imported and craft beer section to take something nice home for Nick. I probably would not have bought so much in that section but I was scared to leave it!
Next I made sure to turn quickly to the left out of the section, avoiding the meat, seafood, and bakery all together...it was a blood bath over there. hehe
I was able to grab bottled water, some dry goods, more coffee, some baby food that didn't need refrigerating in case we lost power and all my homemade stuff gets ruined, and got the heck out of that place.
As I was leaving and thankful that I was a smart and quick shopper, I saw this poor poor couple trying to make it inside. They made the mistake of walking up to the wrong door so they were trapped by the brick wall outside as the flood of people exiting were not letting them cross over to get the the entrance. Even I walked passed. They were kinda giggling about it, but I was just as bad as everyone else and scooted by thinking, you are on your own folks!
The storm hit on Monday and into Tuesday across the east coast and caused horrible devastation in places like New Jersey and did terrible damage in New York, Ocean City Md, the DC Metro Area, and more.
We hunkered down here in Sterling and were very very lucky that we didn't experience and damage to our house or property and never lost power. While the winds blew and rain can down in sheets a crock pot of chicken chili bubbled in my kitchen. I always make something in the crock pot during a storm where we will be stuck inside and its usually some kind of chili. The thing I love about chili is how easy it is to make, the variety of ways you can make it, and how different it can taste eat time you make it. Yet again I was searching through my supplies and didn't have my typical chili supplies so I made due with some logical substitutions that worked out great. I wrote down what I did but its difficult to really write a precise recipe for chili because part of the fun of making it is going back and tasting it throughout the day and adding a dash more of this and a drop more of that. So use the recipe below as a guideline but by no means should you stick to it. Have fun and find other spices to add, different veggies, and make sure to taste it from time to time and sprinkle in some more love.
White Bean Chicken Chili
3 Chicken Breasts shredded
1 Cup V8
1 Med Onion chopped
1 Med Green Pepper Chopped
1 Med Red Pepper Chopped
1 Can Great Northern Beans
2 Cans Diced Tomatoes
1 Packet Taco Seasoning
1 Light Beer
1 T Chili Powder
1 T minced Garlic
1 T Cumin
1 T Hot Sauce
2 T Apple Cider Vin
1 T Garlic Powder
2 T Minced Onion
1 T Paprika
1/2 T Celery Salt
1/2 T Curry Powder
Season 3 chicken breasts and bake in the oven at 350. Cook until done but be careful not to over cook and dry out the chicken. Once chicken is cooked and cooled, shred the chicken and put in the crock pot. Go ahead and dump in any juices from the chicken that may be in the pan as well. Add all the rest of the ingredients and cook on med for a few hours. Check on the pot every once in a while and add more spices if you feel the chili needs a little more flavor.
You can eat the chili once hot and bubbly but its even better to wait and turn down the pot to low for a couple hours.
once you are ready to eat, think about adding some slices of avocado, sour cream, crumbled tortilla chips, or some shredded cheddar or smoked Gouda.
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