Chocolate beef chilli

Serves: 6 Preparation time: 15 mins Cooking time: 2 hours 15 mins

Serve with: De Luze, Pauillac 2013, Bordeaux Claret

INGREDIENTS

50g salted butter

300g minced beef

1 small white onion or shallot

1 inch fresh ginger

3 garlic cloves

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground cinnamon

3 small dried chillies, chopped 100g smoked bacon lardons 100g chorizo, cut into small pieces 150ml red wine

1 x 400g tin cherry tomatoes 300ml water

1 tbsp brown sugar

2 tsp fresh or dried oregano

2 bay leaves

1 tbsp tomato ketchup

50g dark chocolate, grated

400g kidney beans For the jalapeño & cheese scones

225g white plain flour

1 tbsp baking powder

Pinch of sea salt

50g salted butter, chilled and cubed 125g Dubliner cheese, grated 2 fresh jalapeño chillies 125ml-150ml milk

METHOD

1. Place a casserole dish over a medium heat. Add 25g of butter, stir in the minced beef and cook until browned. Remove the browned minced beef to a plate. 2.

Add the rest of the butter to the casserole dish and stir in the onion, fresh ginger and garlic. Allow to cook for two minutes then stir in the ground cumin, cinnamon and dried chilli and cook for another minute. Stir in the bacon lardons and chorizo, and cook while stirring for three minutes to get them lovely and crispy.

3. Return the browned minced beef to the dish and stir well. Pour in the wine, stir and allow to cook for another two minutes. Then add the cherry tomatoes, water, brown sugar, oregano, bay leaves and ketchup. Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper and stir well. Cover and allow to cook for two hours on a low heat.

4. To make the jalapeño and cheese scones, sieve the flour and baking powder into a large bowl. Rub the butter into the flour mixture using your fingertips until it resembles fine breadcrumbs.

5. Stir in half of the grated cheese, followed by half the finely chopped jalapeño chillies. Gradually pour in the milk and use a fork to make a soft dough. You could also use buttermilk if you wish.

6. Roll out the dough on a floured surface to a thickness of 1cm. Cut into six triangles and place on a floured baking tray. Sprinkle the remaining cheese and jalapeños on top.

7. Bake in a preheated oven at 200C or gas mark 6 for 15 minutes. Then transfer to a cooling rack for 10 minutes.

8. Remove the lid of the chilli and stir in the dark chocolate and kidney beans. Leave to simmer for another 15 minutes and then serve with the jalapeño and cheese scones.