Cheesy Beef Chili Cups made in a muffin tin are absolutely amazing. They are delicious, flavorful, comforting and packed with protein.
This week have been tough because when the kids have a break from school we always get too relaxed.
Then it gets hard to get back to our daily routine. One thing that I am trying to change is going to sleep earlier.
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Oh, but that is sometimes impossible especially when I am catching up on my works.
Maybe binge watch shows, or start cooking late at night, which is therapy got my periodical acute insomnia.
Bad idea… but what can I do? While I was going through the magazines one late night, recipes for savoury cupcakes or muffins came up.
My mouth started to water so I just had to try it out.
I said many times to myself that I will not read food mags or go on the food blogs at night because then I have to eat.
Well, the other option is to put the biggest lock on the pantry and my fridge, but neither of those options going to happen.
So, I have to stick to the exercising program, which is not going as well as I anticipated! Ugh!
Are you tempted to try cooking late at night? If you do, what is the most recent recipe that you made?
I love testing recipes late at night. It is so therapeutic. Well, nobody is bugging so I am able to fully enjoy it.
Hey, if you make my Beef Chili Cups, please tag me on Instagram.
@sandraseasycooking with hashtag #sandraseasycooking. Thank you so much in advance!
Other recipes you might like:
POTATO AND BEEF EVERYTHING BAGEL CROQUETTES
CHORIZO CHILI TATER TOTS CASSEROLE
Beef Chili Cups
Beef Chili Cups are the perfect treat to serve for Superbowl, party or pack in your lunch box. They are so delicious and super easy.
Ingredients
- 1 pack of thawed pie crust (2 -9-inch pie crusts)
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1/2 yellow onion, chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 celery sticks, sliced
- 1 bell pepper, diced (any of your choice)
- 1/2 pound ground beef
- 1 cup canned chilli beans in chilli sauce
- 2 oz tomato sauce
- 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
- 1/2 tsp. chilli powder
- Salt to taste
- 4 oz Cheddar Cheese
- Butter for greasing muffin tin
Garnish:
- Sour Cream
- Parsley
- Chilli flakes
- Tomatoes
- Chilli peppers
Instructions
Quick Homemade Chili:
- In a large pot, saute chopped onion, minced garlic, sliced celery and diced bell pepper. Cook at medium-high heat for about 5 minutes or until all the vegetables are tender looking. Splash a bit of beef broth or water and stir scraping the bottom of the pan.
- To that add ground beef and saute for about 7 minutes or until the beef is completely cooked. Add a pinch of salt and black pepper and stir well.
- Add chilli beans, preferably in chilli sauce. You could add corn as well, it gives you a burst of sweetness and colour as well but you do not have to add corn. Mix well to combine and then add tomato sauce and chilli seasoning. Mix it again and taste to see if you need to add more salt and pepper. Season it according to your taste.
- Cook at the medium heat for about 10 minutes. The chilli needs to be a bit thicker than your usual chilli because we going to bake it in the muffin tin. At this point, after cooking for about 10 minutes you can eat it.
Beef Chili Cups
- Preheat the oven on 350F
- Defrost pie crust if it is frozen. You can use other things for crust such as rolled out puff pastry, filo dough or rolled out biscuits. I am using store-bought pie crust.
- Using a larger cup (larger than your muffin tin cup opening 3 1/2 to 4 inches), press into the rolled out pie crust and cut out a circular curst that we gong to use. You may use cookie cutters as well. Glass or a cup works fine as well. After you cut out all, and you have still dough left, roll out again and again until all the dough is gone. Note that the dough will rise for a bit.
- Grease the baking muffin pan/s and place pie crusts in each muffin tin. Press down to secure. Use a fork and pierce the bottom of the crust with a fork just a few times. Bake for 10 minutes in the oven.
- Pull muffin tin out then add about 2 to 3 tablespoons of the chilli in the middle of the crust.
- Top each with shredded cheese. I shred my own cheese block.
- Bake for 12 minutes to up to 15 minutes
- Allow chilli cups to cool down for about 5 to 10 minutes. Run a knife on the side of the muffin tin cup and carefully pull them out and place on the plate.
- Serve with a dollop of sour cream, a bit of scallion or chopped parsley and chilli flakes for garnish.
Look at the instructional pictures bellow.
Notes
You can also bake this without crust, in the regular baking pan just by spreading the mixture evenly, bake it and then tossing the cheese on top. Same taste...made it for my family and everybody loved it!
You can use powdered Onion and Garlic if you wish not to use the real thing.
For the lighter version, I am suggesting ground chicken or turkey, and plain Greek yoghurt instead of the sour cream.
For vegetarian version skip the beef and use tofu scramble and mushrooms, and vegetable stock.
If you wish to use store-bought chilli beans go ahead. I am not judging at all. However, saute ground beef because you will love it. That is my suggestion.
ADDITIONAL TIME: It is time to make chilli and prep dough.
