Chile is a Bust.

Meal #2. My audience pushed it away, literally. I wish I would have had a video camera on them (sparked an idea...hidden camera). Katy screamed, "ooh, there's hard boiled egg in this"... Elie replied, "this looks gross", pushing it away, "I'm not eating it".... Hannah, "then what are you going to eat Elie?...cereal?" So I thought I had won Hannah's vote. She ate it like a trooper, only mentioning that she really didn't like the onion in it. I claimed, "at least one of my kids is in my camp". But I spoke too soon....

Andy arrived home and I told him I had supper in the fridge that he could warm up. I even brought the pan in from the garage fridge for him. I ran upstairs to grab a load of laundry and as I came down the stairs, I caught Hannah telling Andy not to bother eating it. That is was bad... so BUSTED. What a little phony. I guess I should feel good that she was sparing my feelings by acting so honest.

I'm really not upset. It's actually comical, really. I'm crazy to think they could possibly be ready for a casserole. Andy and I grew up with casseroles. They were always edible. Andy claimed, "poor mans meal". It was a hearty meal that you can really add anything to. Whatever happened to the casserole trends of the 70s? Why hasn't the casserole remerged as a cool trend-spotting moment?

My view is that this meal was good. It satisfied the hunger and it made for a great lunch leftover today. So for that, Happy is. I AM a little worried that Elie is going to throw America back into the picture next week when she chooses. I need to convince her otherwise.

For those who want to try this meal, here's the recipe, courtesy of Marian  Blazes from the about.com website:

Chilean Beef and Corn Casserole - Pastel de Choclo

Ingredients:
3-4 medium onions, chopped (I used two onions)
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1.5 pounds of ground beef
2 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
3 cups corn kernels (fresh or frozen) 1 cup whole milk (I used skim)
1/4 cup butter
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons finely chopped basil
1/2 cup raisins
1/3 cup chopped black olives
3 hard boiled eggs, chopped (I used two eggs)
1 cup shredded roasted chicken
2-3 tablespoons powdered sugar

Preparation:

1. Sauté the onions in the vegetable oil until soft and translucent, 5 minutes.
2. Add the ground beef, cumin, 1 teaspoon salt, and pepper. Cook, stirring, until the beef is crumbled and browned. Remove from heat and set aside.
3. Place the corn kernels in a food processor or blender with 1/4 cup milk. Process for 1 to 2 minutes, until corn is blended and appears creamy.
4. Melt 1/4 cup butter in a pan, and add 1 teaspoon salt, 1 tablespoon sugar, and the corn mixture. Add the remaining 3/4 cup milk and simmer, stirring, until mixture thickens, about 5 to 10 minutes. Add the chopped basil and remove from heat
5. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
6. Drain the liquid from the browned beef mixture. Place the ground beef mixture in the bottom of a 3-4 quart casserole dish. Sprinkle raisins, olives, and hardboiled eggs over the beef, then layer the chicken on top.
7. Spread the corn mixture over the top of the casserole so that it covers the rest of the ingredients. Sprinkle the powdered sugar on top. 
8. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes, until the corn mixture is golden brown. 
9. Serve warm.