Chilli Con Carne with Chilli Cheddar Dumplings

This is my absolute favourite time of year. The time for hats, scarves and that heavy winter coat has come. Seeing your breath in the morning. Listening to the leaves crackle under foot and drinking a little too much mulled cider/wine/whatever! Venturing out into the darkest of frost-bitten evenings to see the world set aflame with the whizz-bang-pops of gunpowder and returning to the comforting glow and warmth of the inside world. Evenings at this time of year surely must be filled with foods that are delicious and heavy. Comfort food. And chilli is a prime example.

Ingredients
Chilli Con Carne
500g stewing beef, cut into inch-ish chunks
2 tins of plum tomatoes
1 large onion, diced
50g of Chorizo, diced
1 red chilli (or 1 - 2 teaspoons of dried chilli flakes)
1 heaped teaspoon of paprika
1 heaped teaspoon of cumin
1 large clove of garlic, crushed
1 bell pepper, preferably red, cut into chunks
1 beef stock cube
1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon of Veg oil
Salt and pepper
Garnish with a sliced spring onion and some grated cheddar
Chilli cheese Cornbread dumplings
2 oz fine corn meal (the yellow stuff)
1 oz white spelt flour (or white wheat flour if you're so inclined)
1 teaspoon of baking powder
1 egg
2 fl oz of milk
2 tsp of plain yoghurt
1 small red (very hot!) chilli, diced
50g of grated cheddar


Method
Chilli - Start by frying off the onion in a little veg oil and salt until translucent over a medium heat in a heavy bottom saucepan or casserole dish (something suitable for hob and oven cooking). The salt will draw out the moisture out of the onion and help it cook a bit quicker. Throw in the chorizo, paprika and cumin and fry for a further couple of minutes. Turn up the heat and add the beef. Brown stirring often to ensure it doesn't catch on the bottom. Remove from the heat and add in the remaining ingredients. Stir well and return to the heat. When it has come back to the boil, cover with a lid (tin foil will work too) and place in a preheated oven at 170oC for 2 hours, stirring occasionally.
Dumplings - Just before the 2 hour mark, prep the cornbread mixture. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix well. Remove the chilli pot from the oven and take off the lid. Blob the cornbread mixture around the edge of the pot, replace the lid and return to the oven for 15 to 20 minutes. Like a cake when the cornbread is done it will be dry and springy to the touch. Remove from the oven and serve immediately garnished with some spring onion, grated cheese and a smidge more chilli if you can handle it!