Instructions

In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, vigourously shake the first four ingredients for a couple of minutes-- you want to break up as much of the apricot jamminess as you can. Pour into an ice filled glass and top off with ginger beer and a lemon twist and BLAM POW POW you've got quite a cocktail.

Instructions

Begin by assembling your base ingredients-- these are what will flavor your chili!

Next, cut your chuck steak into 1/2 inch cubes. Dredge in a bit of flour and sprinkle with salt and pepper and set aside. Hit a medium pot with a healthy glug of canola oil and bring to medium high heat. Add meat to the pot and sear on all sides about 2 mins.

You'll want the meat to form a bit of a crust! Remove from the pot and set aside on a plate-- juices will collect, but don't worry we won't waste them.

Now, add your base ingredients to the pot and a bit more canola oil. Caramelize for about 3 mins before adding the tomato paste.

Stir and cook for a minute more.

That done, it's time to add most of the remaining ingredients (in the above list, that's the chili powder allllll the way down to the beans (I like this Whole Foods version!). At this point you can also re-add your meat and all of the accumulated juices to the pot. Stir, and reduce heat to low-- allow to simmer for 2 hours and your meat will be very tender.

On to the crackers! 20 minutes before serving, preheat the oven to 400. Grate your cheddar if you haven't already, and get your spices together.

Place Ritz crackers on a sil pat or parchment paper lightly sprayed with canola oil. Cover with cheese, and sprinkle with pinches of your seasonings.

Bake for about 4 mins, keeping a close eye on the crackers so they don't burn. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly before dipping into chili.

Speaking of which... time to EAT.

After your 2 hour slow cook, serve up your chili in bowls topped with your preferred garnishes-- I love sour cream, more red and yellow bell pepper + sliced jalapeno for another trio element, and (what the hell) more cheddar cheese.

Instructions

For the blueberry syrup-- a super simple base of ingredients is ALMOST all that's needed for a smooth and succulant ice cream topper.

Add the sugar, blueberries, champagne, and lemon to a small sauce pan and bring to a boil-- boil for 1 min and reduce heat to low, stirring briefly.

Whisk cornstarch into water rapidly to create a smooth slurry. Add to the sauce pan and stir. Your sauce will thicken pretty immediately. Add your vanilla to the pan, and remove from heat-- at this point the syrup should just barely slide off the back of a spoon.

Allow the sauce to cool completely, covered, while you move on to the nuts!

The nuts are crazy easy-- preheat your oven to 400, and in a non-stick skillet, melt sugar with a tbsp of water. Place walnuts on a sil pat lined cookie sheet and pour your melted sugar over your nuts. Toss to cover fully.

Bake for roughly 5 mins, checking every so often to make sure they do not burn. Remove from oven and allow to cool before going anywhere near your ice cream!

When ready to chow down, scoop vanilla ice cream into your chosen receptacle (I chose a champagne coup in honor of Madonna) and top with blueberry syrup and nuts.