TREASURE DIGGERS' CHILI!     By David Halter & Allan Holden
                                                                                                                All rights reserved 2003


If you were one of the clubbers at David Halters "Back 40 Treasure Hunt & Bottle Dig," you have been waiting patiently for this very day. If you were there and enjoyed a bowl of David's famous chili, you have been living in fear! You are afraid that, like the formula for Coca-Cola and Colonel Sanders Secret Recipe, you will never again taste the food of the angels. Well, David is not that kind of guy! Having finished runner up in a statewide soup making competition sponsored by AAA of Michigan, you would have to bet that David is some-cook!

Grab a shopping cart because here we go! David states, "I never make the same exact chili twice. But here is the batch served to the club on the back 40!

This makes a big batch! Here's a tip; my wife and I are the only ones at our house, but we make the whole batch and freeze several containers for winter enjoyment! It even gets better reheated! We save plastic cottage cheese cartons and Cool Whip cartons for just this purpose! Be sure to fill the containers right to the top (Leave just enough room for the lid) for freezing without freezer burn.

This is not cheap chili to make so making the whole batch and freezing some is the way to go!


1 lb. Bob Evan's hot pork sausage

1lb. (4-links) fresh hot Italian sausage (skinned)

3 large onions (diced)

3 Ancho or pablano peppers (chopped)

3 pimento or sweet yellow waxed peppers (chopped)

1 bunch Italian or flat-leafed parsley (chopped)

1 bunch fresh chopped oregano

6 large toes garlic (Crushed and minced)

1 can yellow hominy

1 can chick peas or garbanzo beans

1 can dark red beans with juice

1 can black turtle beans with juice

1 can white northern beans with juice

1 can butter beans

2 cans Italian stewed tomatoes

1 can stewed tomatoes with chilies

1 small can Italian tomato paste

2 tsp. ground cumin

2 pkg. chili seasoning

1 tsp sugar

1 or 2 cups water

Fry sausage until just browned; add onions, garlic, peppers & cook until soft. Add to large pot. Add parsley, oregano, hominy, beans, tomatoes, paste and water & cook low heat for 15 minutes. Add chili seasoning, cumin and sugar. Slow cook for one hour ; don't allow to burn. Serve with shredded cheese, diced onions, sour cream, and floured tortillas. ENJOY!!!!!!!!!!!

We had about twelve to fifteen people working on this big pot and we kept returning for more. If you need to fix something special for a group, this stuff will make you a hero! Thanks, David! I consider this a real treasure!

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