Semi-baked Chili Cheese Fries

Who doesn't love chili cheese fries? I mean besides those who want to live a long and healthy life. =P

I was REALLY craving chili cheese fries the day before Thanksgiving. So in addition to cooking Thanksgiving dinner, I made these for lunch.

Btw, how was your Thanksgiving? Andrew and I had a simple Thanksgiving dinner. No turkey. We had oven-fried chicken instead--along with mashed potatoes, gravy, stuffing, cranberry jelly, creamed corn (I'll have to share that recipe one day... it's SO good), and pumpkin pie. It was nice and only took about an hour because a lot of it wasn't made from scratch. I know, I cheated. Gasp!

Anyway, here's the recipe for the chili. It's different from the three bean chili I made last time. That one was more "soupy" and didn't have any meat.

I just realized, I don't remember the EXACT amounts of everything I used... so some are off... oops! hehe

Ingredients:
1 lb Lean Ground Meat (I think I used 90/10 (or was it 80/20?) beef. But you can use whatever you'd like)
1 Jalapeno, Chopped/Minced
1 Onion, Chopped
2 cloves Garlic, Minced
1 can Diced Tomatoes
1 can Kidney Beans, Drained
1-2 tsp Cayenne/Paprika/Chili Powder (Adjust this to the level of spiciness you prefer)
1/2 - 3/4 tsp Ground Cumin (Sometimes, I don't like too much cumin, it's a really strong taste)
2 tsp Oregano
Dash of Cinnamon
1 Green Onion, Chopped
Cheddar Cheese, Grated
Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper, to taste
Frozen French Fries (I'm sure you can make your own, but I bought mine. I like Ore-Ida Golden Crinkles. You can bake them in the oven)

Preheat the oven to 450.
Heat a medium-sized pot and saute the meat in olive oil. When it's about done, add the onions, garlic, and jalapenos. Cook until it all softens. Add the tomatoes and spices and herbs. Cover.

Meanwhile, put your french fries in the oven.

Allow the chili to boil, lower heat, add the beans and simmer until the fries are done. Put some french fries in a bowl/plate/saucer, cover with chili, add a handful of cheddar cheese, and top with chopped green onions.

Eat it!

p.s. I made some (red) velvet fried chicken tenders with a side of cream cheese mashed cauliflower yesterday. SO not what I expected... fried chicken is not my friend. I can never make it right. =(