Elk Grove Village chili cookoff spices things up for business group

As temperatures dropped outside Tuesday night, nearly 20 different chili cooks were heating things up inside Belvedere Banquets in Elk Grove Village.

"I learned there are way more ways to make chili than I ever imagined," said Amie Granger, chairwoman of the GOA Regional Business Association and one of the cookoff's three judges.

Ultimately, five of the 19 professional and amateur cooks took home a trophy or cash prize - and bragging rights - during the organization's "Beans and Jeans" fundraiser.

"I came up with the name first and then tried to figure out what to do with it," said Alyssa Lombardo, director of programming and events for the Elk Grove Village Chamber of Commerce and the GOA. "The chili cook-off seemed like a good fit, and then I kind of wanted to do something philanthropic with the jeans part. So I looked up jean recycling, and the first place I found was a place that uses jeans to make insulation, so it's environmentally friendly, too."

Scores of old jeans were piled outside the banquet hall as more than 200 hungry participants made their way through each chili station Tuesday.

"I'm looking for a good amount spice, but not overpowering with the heat," said Bryan Fry of Heartland Payment Systems. "I want a heartiness as well, not something that's too soupy."

Everyone in attendance got to cast a vote for their favorite chili, a prize that ultimately went to Alex Harrold's "Baby's First Chili."

"Everyone seems to like it," Harrold said. "I make a ton of it every year, and there's never any leftovers."

Television host and podcaster Ted Brunson was also one of the judges who picked a top professional chili and a first, second and third prize for amateur cooks.

"There's really no such thing as bad chili, is there?" Brunson opined. "I'm just looking for the perfect balance of taste and heat, but not something that blows your ears off."

Beau Blackburn of Chef Beau's Klean Kitchen in LaGrange won the professional division with his "Tuscan White Bean Chili."

Anthony Nudo of Mount Prospect won first place and a $250 prize in the amateur division for his "Antonio's Italian Chili," which featured multiple types of peppers and pasta shells.

Randall and Julie LaVeau of Des Plaines claimed second prize and $100 for their "Bad A** Beans" chili.

Wendy Becker of Elgin, who placed third in the amateur division and received $50, was arguably most excited of the night. She not only beat several others, but she bested her husband Gary's entry as well, which she said was the biggest surprise "because he wins everything."