'Hot Blond' wins contest

I now can pose as a chili strategist. On Super Bowl Sunday, I took first prize at a rowdy Atlanta sports bar's well-attended chili competition.

Actually, my theory crystallized a few years ago when a family friend who lives in Boston was entering a chili contest.

I asked him what his "hook" was, which I then had to explain.

To win, I theorized, you need something different, something catchy. "Three-Alarm Chili" bores judges. It's trite. You need to make, say, ostrich chili or reindeer chili or top it all off with chipotle-chocolate salsa, that sort of thing.

I previously had won a contest in Athens with my "Red and Black" turkey chili. Full of red bell pepper and black beans - and subliminally exploiting the University of Georgia - it crushed the opposition in the "Unusual" category.

I savored the moment and my cleverness. Then, every one of the many entries seemed to win a prize in some contrived category or other. The word processor was churning out certificates.

My son-in-law, Andrew, organized the contest back when he was volunteer coordinator at Sandy Creek Nature Center. I later learned that this was how, with virtually no budget, he got food for the Volunteer Recognition Day reception.

But back to the Bostonian. I suggested a white chili, for example with turkey, navy beans and cream, but without tomato, chili powder or green peppers.

After considerable thought, he made an elegant traditional chili full of expensive prime beef. He won only obscurity.

On Super Bowl day, I finally tested my white chili idea at a competition. That's what, going by the name "Hot Blond," took overall first place.

The punch in this dish comes from habanero peppers, among the hottest in the world. Including their seeds and membranes, they can exceed 200,000 Scoville

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