On Tuesday, Melanie and David Gootee began cooking their Gas Up Chili in preparation for the Sixth Annual Chili & Brew Bonanza held at Kye’s II in Jeffersonville on Thursday.
“We started it (chili) on Tuesday, cooked it for about six hours, and then put it in the refrigerator for it to do its own thing,” said David.
Even though the second-place winning chili is actually Melanie’s recipe, the couple shared the responsibility of creating the chili that stood out from the others with its medium taste that derives from chicory; the secret ingredient.
“He’s allowed to stir,” Melanie chuckled. Actually the couple have been sharing the adventures of cooking for almost a decade. And they like to jazz it up with different dishes such as venison.
During the Sixth Annual Chili & Brew Bonanza, there were 25 chili samples to taste from both individuals and restaurants during the Sixth Annual Chili & Brew Bonanza. One of the restaurants included Patticakes & Pies Cafe of New Albany. Pat Cianci, owner of the cafe, is becoming quite the New Albany celebrity with her delightful homemade pies and panini that will send any chain restaurant scrambling for a new recipe. However, on Thursday, she showcased her chili.
“It’s just my mom’s recipe. I got two second place wins last year with this one,” said Cianci.
Also in the running for the chili cook off were the Evening News, PNC Bank, which had a first place nod and the New Albanian Brewery, which took home the first place win for the overall best chili. Of course the New Albanian beer was the perfect complement to the chili, as were the BBC and Upland brews.
The proceeds from the chili cook off, and silent auction items benefit Jeffersonville Main Street Inc., a downtown revitalization group promoting downtown Jeffersonville.
