Three Meat Pepper Chili (aka Ivy's Chili)

You can never have too many chili recipes. Especially with winter on it's way! This recipe was generously shared by Ivy from CrossFit Carbon. Whenever she makes it, it gets great reviews. In fact, Pete told Alex that it would "change his life"! I can see why...First, there's bacon. That's really enough, isn't it? But then you add steak and ground beef. Yum! I made this one on Halloween night so we would have a warm treat while taking care of our Halloween duties. It really hit the spot. Feel free to substitute what you have on hand. Ground pork or bison would work well in this recipe. And adjust the spices to what works for you. Thanks for sharing, Ivy. This one's a winner! Enjoy...

Serves 8-10.

Ingredients
2 onions, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound bacon, cut into one-inch pieces
1 pound stew meat or sirloin steak, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 pound grass-fed ground beef
2 14.5-ounce cans diced tomatoes with green chilis (I like Muir Glen Organic.)
1 28-ounce can crushed or stewed tomatoes
2 Tbsp chili powder
2 bay leaves
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp paprika
1 bag of frozen mixed peppers
Toppings
paleo sour cream
chopped or sliced black olives
chopped onions
mashed avocado

Preparation

1. Place bacon in a large stock pot over medium-high heat. When some fat is rendered, add onions and garlic, and cook for 5-10 minutes or until onion starts to become translucent. Add steak and ground beef and continue to cook until meat is nearly cooked through.
2. Add tomatoes and spices.
3. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until meat is cooked through.
   NOTE: At this point, you can transfer the chili to a crock pot. I just let mine simmer on the stove.
4. One hour before serving, add frozen peppers and stir to combine. 
5. To serve, ladle into chili bowls and top with olives, onion, avocado, and paleo sour cream. You might notice in the top photo that I also crumbled leftover egg yolk from my daughter's dinner (she only eats the whites) on top. It made a great garnish!