GoldenBrown's Spicy Black Bean Chili

• 1 lb ground sirloin
• 1/2 of medium white onion - diced
• 2 large cloves of garlic - minced
• 2 large tomatoes - diced
• 1 can of black beans - drained and rinsed
• 1 15oz can of low sodium tomato sauce
• 1 cup of water
• 1/4 cup chili powder
• 1 tbls masa flour
• 1 tbls black pepper
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1 1/4 tsp kosher salt

In a large pot, brown the sirloin. Add the onions and garlic. Cook over medium low heat for about 7 minutes. Add all of the spices except for the salt and flour. Stir until the meat and onions are thickly coated. Add the tomato sauce and stir in the water. Add the tomatoes and beans. Simmer over low heat for about 15 minutes. Add the salt to taste. To thicken, add in the flour using a sifter to avoid lumps....OR you can add a tablespoon of the chili into a small bowl and add the flour. Mix until it is a thick paste, then stir into the large pot of chili. Simmer for another 20 minutes and continuously stir.

Serve while hot with some sharp cheddar and diced onions. Or whatever else you like!

GoldenBrown's Chicken Noodle Soup

6 boneless/skinless chicken thighs
6 cups Low-Sodium Chicken Broth
1/2 cup of a dry white wine
1 tbsp of chicken flavoring
1/2 of a medium white onion - chopped
2 small carrots - diced
2 celery roots - diced
4 celery stalks, including leaves - diced
1 tsp garlic powder
salt and pepper
3 tbsp olive oil
Egg Noodles

Pat dry the chicken using a paper towel and cut them up into nice size pieces. Lightly season the pieces with salt and pepper. In a large covered pot over medium-high heat, add the olive oil. Add the chicken thighs and lightly sear on all sides for about 7 minutes total. Remove the chicken from the pot onto a separate dish to add back in later. Turn your heat down to medium and add in your onions, carrots, celery and celery root. You can add a little more olive oil if needed. DO NOT SALT AT THIS POINT. Once the vegetables are slightly cooked, add the garlic powder, pepper and chicken flavoring. The chicken flavoring will add additional sodium. Stir for a couple of minutes until the vegetables are coated in the garlic and flavoring. Add the wine. The wine should bring up all of the bits on the bottom of the pan. Cook around another 5-7 minutes. Add the chicken broth (NOTE - if the chicken broth is cold, heat it up first in a separate pan) and bring to a simmer. Add in the chicken and all of it's juices back into the pot. Bring to a simmer and taste if more salt is needed. Add in your egg noodles and cook for another 20 minutes.

Ravioli with Brown Butter Sage

WHOA! OK...now this was...I mean...THIS WAS SO GOOD! I did a bit of a semi-homemade thang here which you'll find out in a minute. But hey...that just means this is a totally quick meal that has bad-ass written...sorry rather poured all over it.

What you are looking at is quattro formaggio ravioli (4 cheese) with a homemade brown butter sage sauce, tomatoes and Crimini mushrooms. I'm estimating....15 minutes to make or less!!! What you'll need is:

1 package of cheese ravioli (Buitoni Quattro Formaggio...my semi-homemade part)

4 tbls of salted butter

6-7 fresh Sage leaves

1/4 cup cherry tomato halves

1/2 cup sliced Crimini mushrooms

Sprinkle of Parmesan cheese

Salt and Pepper

Boil the ravioli in salted water for about 5-7 minutes. At the same time add the butter to a pan over med-low heat for about 5 minutes until it is fully melted. Turn the heat up to about med-high and just as the butter starts to brown (don't worry it will turn brown) add in the remaining ingredients and tear the sage into the pan. Cook for about 2-3 minutes....add the ravioli from the boiling water and fold into the butter mixture until all of them a nicely covered in the sauce. Salt and pepper to taste and garnish with some cheese.