I found the following recipe in an add for a subscription to Field and Stream magazine. I looked online but had trouble tracking down the source for this wonderful recipe.
Not 
only is this chili one of the best tasting recipes I’ve made, but due to the various colors of bell peppers, tomatoes and two kinds of beans it is very colorful and looks really appetizing. I discovered it goes well with cornbread and the last time we made this chili we had friends over for dinner and one of them brought some ramp cornbread to have with it. Ramps are a traditional spring delight to many mountaineers.
A Hearty bowl of Editor’s Chili and A Slice of Ramp Cornbread
Since the ramp cornbread went so well with this chili and I had some ramps in my freezer too; I made a pan of ramp cornbread to have with the leftover chili last evening. See notes below the recipe to learn other ways to change the cornbread if you do not have ramps as well as other helpful notes.
Editor’s Chili
Ingredients:
2 lbs. Venison (I use ground) 1 red bell pepper, seeded & diced
¼ lb bacon diced 1 green bell pepper, seeded & diced
2 medium yellow onions, diced 1 yellow bell pepper, seeded & diced
1 medium red onion, diced 2 jalapeno peppers, seeded & minced
3 cloves garlic, minced ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
4 Tbsp Chili Powder 1 Tbsp Paprika
1 Tbsp cinnamon 1 Tbsp ground cumin
1 Tbsp black pepper 1 Tbsp salt
¼ of 8-oz can chipotles minced w/ scissors ¼ cup honey
1 Tbsp Molasses ½ cup red wine
1 bottle Guiness Stout or other stout 1 ½ cups chopped Italian tomatoes
2 cans chopped tomatoes 2 cans beans drained & rinsed — black & pinto
Chopped cilantro (optional garnish)
Directions
In a large pan, sauté venison in batches until just cooked. Drain and set aside.
In a large pot, sauté bacon until it has browned and released its fat. Remove and set aside.
Saute onion and peppers in bacon fat stirring until soft, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and vinegar and cook for two minutes. Add chili powder, cumin, salt, pepper, cinnamon and chipotles (chipotles add heat and if minced w/ seeds will be hotter) then cook stirring frequently for three minutes longer. Add venison and bacon and stir cooking another couple of minutes.
Add honey, molasses, beer, wine and tomatoes and mix well bringing to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for about one hour stirring often.
Taste and adjust seasonings by adding more chili powder or chipotles if you want it hotter.
Add beans (can be a mix or all of one kind) and cook 30 to 45 minutes longer until it is done and thick as you like.
Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve.
To make the cornbread, I used a Teay’s Valley cornbread mix (made nearby) and added about 1 cup of sliced thawed ramps from my freezer.
Other things that could be added instead of ramps would be green onions, jalapeno peppers, bell peppers, green chilies or even chipotle peppers. To see what chipotle peppers that I often buy check my post on Tortilla soups which shows the canned ones I can buy locally.
Another helpful hint is I often buy peppers and cut them up and freeze them in batches for chilis, stews and soups. I measure out the amounts for various recipes, label them and freeze using a food saver which keeps them nicely.
Any canned beans may be used in this recipe, I just prefer black and pinto beans — so feel free to add whatever kind you like.
