White Chicken Chili: It'll Cure What Ails You

It's days like today, when I'm coming down with a cold and can almost feel the germs settling in and making babies in the back of my throat, that I thank God for the Rosses' white chicken chili recipe. It has antiseptic and decongestant properties that are nothing short of magical.

The first time I had it, I was pregnant and our college friends made it for us for dinner. I thought several times during that dinner that I was going to die. It was just about the hottest thing I had ever eaten, and I am a big fan of spicy food. It made me sweat, it made my eyes water, it burned the whole way down (and I do mean the whole way.) And yet, I had a second bowl. And asked for the recipe. And fixed it at home the first time about a week later. It was that good.

Since then, I've burned enough taste buds off at Chipotle so that I don't notice the heat of the Ross Chili too much. It's the dish my mom most requests when she comes over for dinner, though she sometimes asks me to turn the heat down on it a little. It's a staple, even if it is a little too hot for Ains, requiring me to make a second meal for her.

I always have it when I feel a cold coming on. I swear, there have been times it's nipped the virus in the bud. If I have a sore throat, it kinda numbs it. Numbs it, or does nerve damage, but either way, you don't feel the sore throat as much. And I think it creates such an inhospitable environment in your mouth and throat that nothing can survive. The germs get wiped out much as they would if you could gargle Lysol. Have you ever read Dave Barry's "Flaming Toilet" column, where he visits with a microbiologist who says the only way to really get a toilet 100% bacteria-free is to pour gasoline on it and set it afire? I am pretty sure a dousing with this chili would have the same effect. But it's far too valuable to waste that way (and I doubt it holds on to its antiseptic properties after it, you know, passes into the toilet by its own means, though the first time I ever ate it it still felt pretty potent on its way out.)

So in a week where I am trying to find the positives, this one's an easy one. The Rosses' white chicken chili definitely brightens my day and cures what ails me. The heartburn will be soooo worth it tonight.