The Only Difference Is Your Down There

Okay, I don't believe I'm one to brag.  You'd have to ask people that know me well.  If anything people tell me I sell myself short or lack confidence.  Which is true but the truth is I don't think that much of that many other people either, so it's balanced. I think we're all pretty flawed.  Heck sometimes the flaws are what I like about people. When I look at someone I instantly see things, like weaknesses, dishonesty, arrogance, fear, apprehension, all kinds of stuff just pouring out of their presence.  It's a gift.  Or I look at them and see them seeing my flaws. I see them seeing my vulnerability, my anger, my innocence, my distrust.  It's a curse.  Whichever way you look at it I guess.  Maybe we all do it, I just happen to notice everything and care to write about it.   Plus I'm in customer service so I meet hundreds of people every week and get a chance to hone my skills. 

So I get excited when I do something impressive even to me. And it's usually around cooking or an idea. Looking back, I'm not even sure why this seemed like such a breakthrough as it's just a simple roasted sauce.  Very much like the roasted tomato sauce I made the other day and went on about.  Maybe it's because in my mind you roast tomatoes, peno's, onions and garlic.  That's the perfect mix.  Never a need to go outside of that combo, except when using tomatillos.  But this time I used red bell peppers, and when roasted, they have their very own unique distinct flavor. 

Or maybe it was the perfect balance of the ingredients. The full head of roasted caramelized garlic and the whole 3 jalapenos somehow made a new rich sensation that seemed so far from what I'd created before.

The smell and the look.  What am I talking about, it looks just like the roasted tomato sauce.

But the sweet fragrant taste, that part is true. 

So whatever was going on, it was tasting good so I kept the ball rolling by making a turkey chili in the slow cooker with this sauce and small white beans. I added little to no chili powder, celery, green bell peppers, whole tomatoes, chicken stock and I let the sauce be the main flavor agent, along with a turkey neck.

I also added about 1/4 cup of fine corn meal for texture and some liquid smoke.

The results were surprisingly deeeelicious!   Tasted more like an African stew.  This is going into heavy rotation. 

And I'm here to slightly boast about it even though you and I both know that I'm a self loathing two-bit home cook with limited talent.